Experimental
by Izzy-Neko
Summary: Modern AU: Whoever said the phrase 'Hope is being able to see the light despite all the darkness' has never had their life practically taken away from them in an instant. When you're torn between the company holding your life practically in its hand, and the last resistance that are supposed to be the 'saviors' of both worlds- which do you choose? Handsome Jack, OC, Borderlands FF
1. Late night cycle rides

**Chapter 1**

* * *

"Words birds thirds turds." – Normal speaking.

 _[Words birds thirds turds.]_ – Texts / Emails.

 _"Words birds thirds turds._ " - in a phone call / other end of the call.

' _Words birds thirds turds.'_ – Thoughts.

* * *

 **December 12** **th** **, 2022.**

 **Monday. 23:02.**

"Have a good day y'all," a rough, elderly voice called from across the small square, tech-filled room. Four desks, each with a single computer, took up the limited and cramped space. A young woman raised her head so she could see over the top of her computer screen. She leaned forward placing her chin on the top of her screen as she watched the older man pack up his backpack, placing his laptop, papers, and books inside.

"You're leaving?" she questioned, frowning as he continued to gather his personal items. He didn't reply as he threw his coat on, followed by his backpack. "Sir, we have so much work to do. Can't you stay just a bit longer?" she asked, hoping to persuade him to keep working a bit longer as what was left to finish was his work, something he was working on in his spare time to benefit the company's information system.

"Sorry, but no. I have a _very_ late dinner with the misses as an apology for staying late yesterday," he replied with a sly grin as he pulled on his tan winter hat; complete with bright and bouncy pom-poms and leopard printed leather. It was a rather silly look in Alice's opinion, but it suited his childish-asshole nature. So, it was perfect.

"But sir, we-" she started. However, before she could finish her sentence, he had already crossed the distance from his desk to the door, allowing it to slam shut behind him. Alice, along with one of her other colleagues, sat silently in the quiet office. The lights automatically dimmed a second later, casting the office in a dark amber glow.

"You've got to be kidding me," Alice said as she leaned back in her chair with defeat. "Like, really?" she asked, more to herself than her co-worker. Bring her fingers up to her nose, she pinched the skin between her eyes in hopes to relieve the building pressure. With a deep calming breath, she glanced back at her computer screen. Line after line of code filled the screen, and it wasn't working like it was meant to. Now it was up to her and her partner to pick up the pieces their boss left them with _. 'What a dick.'_ Alice thought to herself. It was nothing new, and she knew there would be many more late nights spent working on the project after her boss left. It wasn't like he cared if anyone else went home on time.

"It could be worse," said her co-worker, his voice a deep and strong. Alice couldn't stop the frown that took over her face. She ignored his attempt to cheer her up and leaned forward to continue working on the faulty code. "You shouldn't let it get to you," he gave her a small smile from where he stood above his computer that was opposite of hers. He chuckled as she sneered back at him. With a sour face, Alice grabbed her favourite coffee mug and made to stand. The happy smiling blue and yellow fish with the words 'just keep swimming' printed above looked out of place in her angry hands.

She knew Dan was right. In the technology industries/division, lower level employees were regularly taken advantage of by the 'higher-ups'. So, it was something they come into knowing from the start. She didn't agree with it, and she knew everyone had the same thoughts about the mistreatment, but they didn't say a word because the pay was good. Complaining would probably only end with a one-way trip to the unemployment office.

Relaxing back down in her desk chair no longer bothering with getting another coffee, she released a frustrated breath whilst running a hand through her chocolate bangs.

"Dan, I am serious," Alice started. "We have been working here for what, two, four, six or whatever months now?" She said counting on her fingers to make a point; even though she had lost count after three. Maths wasn't her favourite subject. "All we do is stay late and sort out his shitty work, while he goes home." She released her angry grip on the poor mug, putting it back in its place. Right now, not even the remaining cold coffee would provide her any comfort. Her empty hands quickly drifted back to the multi-coloured lit up keyboard, something that she had brought from home. It was also something that made her workstation stand out from her other co-workers. "For once I would like to actually finish early and be able to leave on time."

"But alas, my dear angel, that is not going to happen," Dan teased as he glanced over at her. He smiled as her nose wrinkled at his nickname. Alice sent him a flustered glare and added a 'humph' as she got back to work at the long code in front of her. Easily aggravated, she tugged on her long brown hair that kept finding its way into her line of sight. With a final grunt, she quickly plaited it and pulled it back behind her. Hopefully, it would remain out of her way, or she might be tempted to shorten it with the aid of Dan's scissors.

"We don't even get paid overtime..." Alice said under her breath, but Dan still heard her complaint.

"Yeah, I know. It sucks. We really should be compensated, considering we don't leave till 'bout one in the morning and then have to turn around just to come back a few hours later." Dan agreed with a sigh. Sitting as his own desk, he focused on his own work trying to find if anything needed to be corrected. Everything blurred together in front of him, so he pushed himself away from his desk and cracked his neck. In one fluid movement, he rose from his desk, grabbing both his empty mug and the one sitting beside Alice. Without looking at her he walked over the small, overworked coffee machine in the corner. "Want another?" he asked, as he dumped out the old coffee grounds and went about making a fresh pot.

"Yeah, sure," she said as she gave a sloppy thumbs up so Dan could see it over her computer screen. She fought to hold back the bitter comment she so desperately wanted to add. However, Dan didn't deserve her negative attitude. It wasn't his fault that they were stuck yet again, working a late night to fix someone else's mistakes. It wasn't the first time, and she knew it wouldn't be the last. They were the only IT engineers for the entire company, and with a little over one hundred total employees, there wasn't a need to expand or hire more engineers to help lighten the workload. "God, I hate my life," she sighed.

"Tsk, tsk. Cheer up, honey bun," Dan said, another charming smile beaming at Alice. He quickly filled both their mugs and crossed the room. Placing her mug so down on her coaster, he leaned closer to her and gave her neck a small nuzzle with his nose, making sure to breathe in her light scent.

"You're violating rule three you know," she said, trying to sound disappointed. However, she never bothered to tell him to stop or push him away. Her cheeks warmed, and her typing slowed down but didn't fully stop. He responded with a low grunt and pushed forward against her chair as his eyes slid closed. "Oi," Alice squeaked.

"Alice, sweetie. Let me have this moment," he begged with a groan. Moving his nose deeper into the shallow of her neck, Alice couldn't contain the small sigh that escaped her. "Working for fifteen consecutive hours is killing me," Dan confessed into her skin, enjoying the warmth under him.

"Yeah, I know the feeling," Alice admitted as a smile slid across her face. Even though he was already breaking rule three of her relationship guidelines - 'No affection in the workplace' - she angled her head to rest it on his cheek where it was still nuzzled in her neck. "I am almost done with my section, " Alice informed Dan as she reworked the last line of faulty code, making the corrections needed. With the last keystroke, she stretched back into the warmth of the man behind her. He reopened his tired hazel eyes when she shifted against him. "I'm done," she smiled.

Reaching down to her main computer tower she activated the input port, pulling the cable that popped out and brought it up to connect with the port located in the temple of her forehead. The transfer only took a moment, then she disconnected, allowing the cable to retract back into the computer station _. 'Thank you Hype for your amazing invention,'_ Alice thought.

"I finished a little before fatso left," Dan murmured lightly into her shoulder. It was no secret that their boss was a little round in shape. He pressed his mouth against her collar, earning a small grunt from her, along with a brighter blush and tremor. She couldn't help but feel his own port press against her skin at his actions. "God, I just wanna sleep," he complained with a yawn. A thought passed through his mind, and he allowed a slight chuckle to escape as he bit gently on her flesh. He loved toying with her skin, never biting hard enough to cause pain, just enough pressure to bring her some pleasure. He loved the effect it had on her, the small arousing grunt that escaped her soft lips.

"Geez, don't get started here," she frowned as she pushed at his well-styled hair. It was the quickest way to get him to 'retreat'. He grunted in disapproval as she messed with his pride and joy. "Oh, shut up," she told him with a smile, "you adore your hair being played with." And he did. But like she had her set rules, he had a few of his own, and his hair being anything but perfection in public was one of them. However, when alone with Alice, he loved the attention she would give _any_ part of his body.

"Well-yeah-but-yeah-but," he stumbled. "Shut up," he smirked as he leaned closer to her again. "You know what I am thinking?" He questioned her.

Her mouth thinned into a small line, her hands moved to his and her thumbs graced his long slim fingers. She took note of the slight fuzz they had, how much larger they were then her own. How warm they were. Leaning back into his hold, she felt the slight prickle of his unshaven whiskers on her neck. He hadn't shaven in days, due to the extra workload this last week had unloaded on them.

"No," she replied. However, she did have a good idea of what he was thinking. When they were alone, he seemed to only have a few things on his mind. Like most men really in her mind.

"I'm thinking dinner," he said as he nuzzled her neck. "Followed by some crazy sex," he nipped her soft skin lightly to express his desire.

"Oh, is that all?" Alice said with a soft smile.

"Then we would watch an episode of Eastenders," Dan added without shame.

"Oh my God, you and your soaps," Alice said as she laughed, a small smile taking over. Dan grinned at her words, his eyes glancing across the small cramped office to land on the battered old clock that hung above the door. It's wasn't much to look at, and everyone hurried through the door because of the fear of it falling on them, but it did its job.

"Come on," Dan said as he pulled away from her and stood up straighter. He moved around to grab his muddy leather jacket and tugged it on.

"You sure you can drive?" Alice asked with real concern in her voice, as she freed herself from her desk. "You haven't slept properly in days," she said with a hesitant voice as she also stood. The growing black bags under his eyes was alarming. She knew she didn't look any better.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. Sure. Of Course. I drove here remember?" he gave her a small dismissive wave, while he fought off a large yawn. "Plus, I have had a lot of practice for like the last six months now. "

Slowly, she tugged her sleeves down, pulling them over her hands as she glanced back to the man standing in front of her, accepting her jacket from him. The loud ticking of the clock only made the small office seem more abandoned, a rather spooky feeling for the entire building, really. Without missing a beat, she grabbed her belongings and followed Dan out the door. Gladly the clock had mercy on them and remained on the wall while they pass under it. Walking through the empty halls of the building, it was clear that they were once again the last to leave. Only the janitorial crew roamed around, doing their job in silence. Pushing through the last set of main doors, she kept a step behind Dan, following him to where his old motorcycle stood. An absentminded smile crept across her lips as he pulled out a plain grey helmet from the saddle bag, handing it to her.

"Where's yours?" she asked, frowning as he pulled out a pair of reflective goggles along with a thinner, clearly not meant for a motorcycle, helmet. It didn't even look like it would protect anything from a fall off a normal push petal bike, let alone one that would reach high speeds. "Danny, _seriously_? That's not going to do you any good if we crash!" Alice argued. While a part of her was touched that he gave her the better helmet, she was still concerned about his own safety.

"This will be just fine," he answered her. "Besides, it's not like anyone else is going to be on the road at this fricking time of night," Dan added, trying to calm her worry. He threw his leg over the bike and pulled it up, kicking the stand up. With much practice, he started it and allowed the engine to roar to life. With a childlike grin, he turned to Alice and held out a hand to help her balance while she swung up behind him. He loved the way she drew her arms around him, how her legs would tighten around his in an effort to not fall off. He chuckled as he revved the engine, the beast below them purring with a raw power. Alice tightened her grip, and Dan loved it. "Getting a bit handsy there babe," he called back to her.

"Oh, shut up!" she bit back at him. Closing her eyes for a moment, she took a deep breath as the bike let out a loud roar before Dan drove it out of the parking lot and into the empty street. She was glad there was not much traffic. They only passed a few other cars on the road, and Alice could only guess what drove them to be out at this time of night. Were they just getting off work also, headed home to rest before starting it all over again in the morning?

Large trucks loaded with produce and other supplies made up most the other vehicles on the road. They had their late-night deliveries to make so as to not disrupt the business of their customers. Alice hated driving so close to the larger haulers, and Dan loved to swerve and drive around them. "DAN!" Alice called out in warning, letting him know she didn't appreciate his reckless act. She could feel his deep laughter while she held onto him.

"Come on, babe, trust me!" Dan called back to her. He glanced back for a moment as she responded by gripping his shirt tighter. The engine of the truck they passed got louder as it pulled up alongside them, casting a shadow on them. For the next few minutes, the driver of the truck stayed right next to them, and it had Alice on edge. Dan could tell it bothered Alice by the way she continued to grip his torso. "C'mon, babe," he called back to her in an effort to calm her down, "nothing is gonna-"

"Look out!" Alice yelled as she saw a dark figure running across the highway in front of them.

Dan cursed as he forced the bike to swerve so as not to hit to the pedestrian. Looking around he quickly he took note of what lane he ended up stopping in. "Shi-" he swore, acting with every bit of speed he had, he reached around and pulled Alice out of her seat behind him. Thankful that she was so much smaller and lighter than him, he pulled her to his side and away from the oncoming truck. It had been one that was behind the one that ran alongside them, it had been in his blind spot.

Moving at seventy miles per hour, the driver didn't have enough time to slow down. It wasn't until after the driver hit them that he slammed on the breaks, screeching and burning rubber while he tried to stop. The force of the hit smashed into the bike and its riders without mercy.

Alice didn't know what happened, one moment she was calling out to Dan to watch out in front of them, then he was pulling her from her seat. Next was the pain, everything hurt, and she felt like she was being weighted down. Her head was pounding, however, other sounds seemed dull. Her sight was blurry, but she could see the reddish colour on the pavement in front of her.

"Dan," she called out weakly. A cough escaped her lips as she tried to move, looking for her partner. Turning her head, she spotted Dan, their hands still connected, however there was no grip whatsoever. Her vision was tunneled, she couldn't see everything, but all she wanted was to know that Dan was okay. She bit her bottom lip, noticing a large cut in the corner. She tried to pull her hand up to see how bad it was, only to yell in pain. Turning, she saw her hand was crushed and trapped under part of the broken motorcycle. She tore her eyes away from it and looked back to Dan, calling out to him. He didn't respond, and didn't move. She started to panic as she saw a patch of blood matting up his hair, along with the large bloody ridge running across his forehead. "Danny..." she called out again, begging. "Danny, please," she kept trying to get a response. Her eyes clouded with hot tears, both from pain and fear. She kept calling out to him, hoping that he would commit with a smart-ass remark, she didn't take any notice of the small crowd that started to gather around them.

She took note of every part of him she could see. He looked much worse than she felt. Blood gathered under his head, where the helmet hadn't protected him from the ground. Bruises bloomed across his once strong cheeks, eyes, chin and nose. What wasn't bruised was raw from where the rough road tore away at his smooth skin. Blood seeped from both his nose and mouth, along with a large number of cuts that covered him. What worried her most, however, was the amount of blood seeping out rapidly from the port on the right side of his head. It looked like a crimson river flowing onto the concrete.

"Talk to me, p-please," she begged again. She tried with all her might to get close to him, but she couldn't move. She was stuck where she lied, her body screaming silently in agony. Her breath caught in her throat, a weak cough escaped and she could taste the bitterness of blood on her tongue. "Please...anything." She tried again. "Say anything," she cried. Tears ran down her face as she felt what little strength she had left her. Everything seemed to hit her at once, the amount of pain she was really in, and the fact that the world was darkening around her.

As darkness fell on her, and the world vanished, her mind struggled and screamed to wake up. However, she was pulled further down into the void. The numbing and unforgiving darkness had its hold on her, and wasn't about to release her. While a part of her felt calm at the floating sensation, no pain touched her, there was also, no Dan. The more she seemed to fight to wake up, the tighter it clung to her. The more scared she felt of this darkness that seemed to seep into her very core.

* * *

 **December 15** **th** **, 2022.**

 **Thursday. 08:32.**

After what felt like hours, she calmed. Allowing the bleak shadows of her mind to take her as she could feel her senses returning. Pain, was the first thing she felt. An unbearable pain in her legs, arms, and her head.

To her, it felt like mere hours as everything started flooding her systems. The sound of a soft beeping hit her first after the sudden rush of pain filling her. She could barely utter a groan as just opening her eyes was a task harder than normal. It took minutes to achieve, only to clamp her eyes close when fresh sunlight graced her for the first time in ages. She resisted wrinkling her nose at the strong smell of antibiotics.

A soft, shaky whine escaped her throat as she opened her eyes one at a time, glancing around the room, she took notice of it all. The white painted walls, snowy curtains surrounding her bed as she took note of the machines she was hooked up to. One she noticed was a drip, attached to her wrist making her feel oddly uncomfortable. She tried to swallow but the scratchy feeling in her throat prevented her, licking her lips, she felt the familiar scab formed at the corner of her lip.

"… What-" whimpering, a painful cough exploded in her chest. It took her a moment to reopen her eyes, scanning herself over the pale-yellow blanket and bedsheets as she saw stitches after stitches up and down her arms. Closing many deep cuts, she didn't recall getting. A frown graced her lips as she saw her right hand covered in a thick plaster of bandages. She yelped when she attempted to move a single finger, grinding her teeth to stop any more painful noises from escaping her.

There it was. The pain that reminded her she was still alive.

' _This hurts. This hurts so damn much.'_ She thought, glancing over at her other hand by her side as she took notice of its absence. Literally, no hand or even forearm to access the condition off. _'Where is it? O-Oh my god where's my hand? It was- it was literally just here! Ohmygod where's my hand?!'_

The loud, rushed beating of her heart monitor brought her back down to Earth as well as alarming the nearest doctor of her condition. It took no time for one to cross the hospital to her ward. A tall board man entered the room, a smile apparent on his face as he picked up the clipboard near her bed.

"Good morning sleepyhead. I see you've finally joined us," he jokes lightly, his eyes ghosting to her as she only narrows her golden blue orbs at him. "Okaay. Not one for jokes. Got it," he chuckled dryly. "I'm Doctor Valance and I've been keeping you company these last couple of days."

She opened her mouth to speak but coughed, pain filling her features. The doctor's eyes widen as he came over to the machine beside her, fidgeting with a few knobs and buttons.

"Looks like the levels of morphine your nurse gave you aren't enough," he chuckled, glancing at her as she grunted. "Give it a moment. I've upped it a little so you might feel drowsy or spells of nausea. Please tell me if you do."

"Unn," she whined slightly. Her eyes drifted to her window before back to the older doctor, frowning as the feeling of pain seeping out of her was just unnerving. Losing all the feeling of agony and being replaced with nothing. Absolutely nothing. Totally, unnerving. A moment later, he handed her a thin pair of glasses, seeing her discomfort.

"Your prescription. You'll get a headache without them," she blinked twice after putting them, as her vision cleared. She could read the inspirational posters on the walls. 'Don't give up!', 'It isn't as bad as it seems!' And 'Hang in there, kitten!' The kind of crap all hospitals had to cheer up their patients.

After a couple of minutes, the doctor took a seat at the chair by her bed, mindlessly watching her attempt to move her jaw. The pain was dulled, for sure, but still apparent to her. "Wa…er…" she frowned, muttering just above a whisper, pulling the breathing mask off of her face while making a face. She couldn't move her fingers well but her palm was enough.

"Oh, right. Give me a moment," the doctor rose to his feet, quickly exiting and returning seconds later with a bottle of water. Slowly, she lifted her right hand with a small hiss. "No-No, let me," he chuckles softly, helping her place her arm back down carefully before she took a small sip from the bottle.

However, this simple task was interrupted by a painful cough, launching forward. Tears appeared in the corners of her eyes. The doctor pulled her back into a slight sitting position, watching her coughs tremble off into small shakes and sputters.

"Oh cra-wow, I'll just- get something for that," Valance gave her a quick bob of his head, chuckling as he ducked out the room in a hurry. She blinked quickly, a small sputter escaping her as she strained to lift her hand to her chest, clenching the fabric under her fingers.

The pain was excruciating. Dull, but returned with vengeance with each breath she took. _'I need to ask that Doctor what the hell is wrong with me.'_ She gave herself a small nod as she glanced at her missing left hand, a frown took its place on her lips. Alice quickly looked away to the window, taking note of the lack of- Well, anything.

A twinge of hurt hit her as she saw absolutely nothing. **Days** he said. Yet, there was nothing to even say that anyone had noticed her absence. No flowers. Not cards. No balloons. Nothing. _'Well… Everyone's aboard. It isn't like they would even hear about me and…'_

She paused, her eyes widening biting her bottom lip as a silent sob escaped her.

How could she have forgotten about Daniel? Was he okay? Was he in the hospital with her?

Then it hit her.

Was he alive?

"Hello? Knock-knock I'm coming in," a strong, professional voice knocked against her open door. It was a man in a black suit and tie, smiling as he had a clipboard and suitcase in hand. Alice's eyes narrowed at the sight of him, especially his abnormally thick black hair. "Hello there, Miss Jones, my name is Hugo; it's great to see you're up already. How's the arm treating you?" the tall man questioned while walking over to her, glancing at the seat beside her. "May I?" he asked, taking a seat without waiting for a reply, placing his suitcase beside his chair as he leaned back into it.

Her eyes wondered his suit till the name 'Hype' read across his pocket in bright yellow colours, her eyes widened subconsciously as they wandered back to his brown-green eyes. A nervous chuckle escaped her lips as she scooted away from him in her chair. Her left arm fixed in place stopped her from moving too far, her frown now a lot more apparent.

"Look. I get it. You've just opened your eyes. You're in a lot of pain right now, probably drugged up on the _good stuff_ ," he mused, smiling with a small chuckle as he glanced to the missing part of her forearm before coughing into his fist. "None the less, my company and I saw what happened on the News… our condolences to you and your friend. A grave loss for you and his family. But, we have a proposition for you which simply cannot wait. It's best to start while your mental stability is low."

Slowly, taking a deep breath, moving the discarded water bottle with her legs which twitched with pain. She opened it clumsy with her right hand, giving the man a glare when he attempted to help but after a minute, she was able to drink from the bottle.

"W-What –cough- do you want from me?" she finally said, glancing between the man and the bottle as it took her a moment to screw the top back on it without ripping the stitches out of her hand. "I have nothing Hype would be interested in. I'm a simple Software and IT engineer. I'm sure you have hundreds of those at your disposal," she paused, her lips thinning into a line as she sat up as straight as she could without the pain disturbing her expression.

He gaze didn't lighten. If anything, a small smile grew on his face as he folded his fingers tighter.

"What do you want exactly? I'm really not in the mood for visitors. I'd really like to sleep this off," she croaked softly, frowning as she saw the doctor from before step in. He passed the man beside her with a harsh glare which only confirmed that he wasn't even meant to be in here. Valance gave her a nod before retreating out of the room, closing the door behind him.

"Well. You're straight to the point. I like that," he smirked, looking at her left arm, making her shift uncomfortably under his gaze. "Actually. Being an S&I engineer is one of the few reasons we are interested in discussing this proposition with you," he started, pulling his suitcase onto his lap and opening it up. He pulled out a stack of paper, handing it over to her. "It's an experiment really, we have tons of people already going through it as we speak but we haven't, up till now, found someone of your… intellect and situation for a certain one," with two clicks, he placed the suitcase back down beside him, clasping his hands before him on his knees.

She pushed the thin glasses up her nose further as she read. "So," she slowed her breathing, reading the first page carefully with narrowed eyes as she wasn't wearing her contacts; making reading a much harder task. "This is a… two-year trial?"

"Two years, that is correct," he brought his hand up and stroked his goatee for a moment, smiling as he mentioned to the paper with said hand afterwards. "If it goes well, we might consider lengthening it for another."

A small scoff made its way out of her mouth, flipping to the next page before quickly scanning the page in front of her as best she could. Her hand gripped the paper tighter as the payment was mentioned, but it loosened when it mentioned what would be deducted. _'Thirty-Five Gs for a two-year trial?'_ Shaking her head, she brought her bandaged hand up to her mouth, coughing into it violently before repeating the difficult task of opening the half-full water bottle for another sip.

Once the fit had passed and her throat felt less murderous, she pressed on to read to the end of the paragraph as it stuck to her.

Thirty-five grand would be the original sum of money. Until you deduced a robotic forearm and hand, two months of rehabilitation for both her robotic arm, real arms and legs. And let's not forget the E contacts that they would be giving her… plus the extra money used to get them especially prescribed for her -2.75 / -3.00 eyes. Keeping in mind her left eye needed a Toric lens.

That would be taking a huge thirty-one grand chuck out of the thirty-five. Thankfully, from the look of what was written- the contacts were monthly use contacts that would be sent to her monthly for free for the two years. She would have only one grand if she didn't already have a port inserted. Leaving her with four. It was a shitty amount to have at the end, but it was replacing her arm, giving her another chance to continue her life. What more could she want?

She flipped over to the next page as she kept her straight face while reading. It got onto the part about what she would be doing.

What would she be doing?

For two years straight, weekly updates to the company about what was going on as well as her experiences. Once she got to the end of it, she released a sigh. Placing the staff of papers down, she pinched her nose as it was running through her head.

British hospitals were… complex. But at the same time, simple. They gave you minimal care for free. If you would prefer something like a replacement limb or anything like that. You'd have to pay for it.

She shook her head as she knew a replacement limb would be costly but something she would need for her job; it wasn't like it was easy to code with one hand- her employers would happily find reasons to fire her. Without this… arrangement. She was almost certain she wouldn't get the robotic limb in order to even work.

"What… happens? The explanation is rather brief." she said, looking back to the man who had been sitting rather patiently as she watched him sit up straight with this smug smile.

"It's quite simple really. We insert an experimental AI into your core," he mentioned to the port on her temple. "We'd like you to test it out. To put it simply: let it learn from your life, its environment and teach it about life here. While also keeping us up to date with how it's doing," he explains, gesturing with his hands a little before pointing to her. "Your AI is quite special. It's made after a well-respected past leader of Hype- a man I idolized actually. He rose through the ranks from a programmer, like yourself. This AI was even created by a very important scientist… before his death," he explains, frowning for a moment before looking back to her, replacing his features with a smile.

' _This… all seems rather too good to be true,'_ she thought, frowning as she looked back down at the papers as if it would give her some sort of sign of what to do.

"You k-" she coughed, stiffening. "I-I just woke up and," she paused, "I… just… I'm not entirely-"

"Look, I understand you have concerns and worries. But, I can guarantee your safety with this project, believe me," he stood up from his seat, pulling out a business card in exchange for the papers. "When you decide what you want, give me a call," he encouraged, making her mouth dip into a frown at how sure he sounded of himself.

"Yeah. Sure. I'll call you when I decide," she hummed, pulling her hand back to her lap with the card in hand, giving it a look over as she noticed how shiny it was. Well, it looked real enough.

HYPE CORPORATION

Hugo P. Vasquez

Senior Vice President of Securities Propaganda

+44 7392 420HYPE

The card looked real enough. But she had met enough con artists to know that fake business cards were a real thing.

The brunette's eyes traveled back to the man as he placed the papers back into his briefcase, still smiling smugly as she shifted a little in her bed as a small coughing fit hit her.

"I'll show myself out. That doctor should be out here with some meds to sort that out," he mused, presenting her his right hand. After a moment of staring at it, she returned the handshake as she took note of how gentle he was being. Maybe it was pity. Maybe it was something she just couldn't describe. Either way, it left a deep, empty feeling in her stomach not knowing what this dark foreshadowing was.

With another small smile, he headed for the door, opening it and looking back to her. "Again, call if you need anything," he said before closing the door behind him, a small sigh escaping her as she looked down at the card in her lap.

Hype. Hype of all companies. It has been a worldwide powerhouse for the last three, four years. Quickly dominating whatever market, they went into from medical to food even to war. It was shocking, to say the least. Especially for Alice having someone from so high in his branch come to see her, a low-level IT engineer. Programming… yes, she had a degree in it but it wasn't something she was overly keen on talking about or even doing.

After a moment of silent thinking, her doctor finally entered the room with a cup of orange juice and a small jar of red and blue pills.

"I- That guy was," he stuttered at first, rubbing his neck after passing her the two items. "Let me get this out there- I didn't wanted him to come see you- well. At least so soon after you just-"

"What hospital is this," she questioned, grabbing a single pill before downing the juice.

"… It's Hype," he sighed, taking the empty glass from her and placing the jar by her bedside. "I know I know, he had every right to come in here but you- I mean it's only been-"

"Barely an hour since I woke up?" she said, placing the breathing mask back on with a soft sigh as the morphine had started to wear off. Alice glanced up to her nervous doctor, watching his hand move from his wrist to his neck. "It's fine. It's a good deal," she paused, frowning as she shifted herself back further into her bed. "I just- I want a little time to think it over."

Valance nodded, pushing a few brown bangs out of his face as he tapped his fingers against his forearm.

"Alright. I'll have the nurses come by in an hour to give you a check-up," he smiles, walking over to her. "Just don't die on me. I don't want another strike against me, my mentor will kill me," he joked, checking her machine. When the heart monitor sped up, he chuckled. "I'm kidding! I haven't lost anyone yet!"

"And I don't plan to be the first," she frowned. "Where is my phone?"

The doctor paused, looking at the table near the window. "Your phone didn't… survive but your SIM did. I transferred it to an old phone we had lying around," he said, bringing over the old 2015 model phone. She accepted it with a small nod, smiling. "I'll get out of your hair. Page me if you need anything- it's the top button on your bed," with a small grin, he was gone.

The patient moved awkwardly on her bed, turning on the phone with a cringe at how long it took to just start up. After verifying a few security checks, she headed to her contacts pulling up her brothers.

 _[Hey Pete, this is Alice. I'm currently in hospital right now so please, please call me when you get this.]_

She paused, biting her lip as she sent the message before starting on the next one for her other older but younger brother.

 _[Sup Daryl guess who! Joking, this is Alice. I'm in hospital right now and I really need to talk to you and Peter. Call me when you get this.]_

Okay, she wasn't at all sure what she was going to say to her brothers. She shook her head, holding it one-handedly as ideas started to spin around uncontrollably.

' _Hey bros! Guess what happened to me this Monday! My secret partner Dan, yeah you know him, my roommate? Well, we got into a traffic accident and he died, at least I think he did because NO ONE IS TELLING ME ANYTHING! I have doubts, okay. I've lost part of my arm and I'm practically a cripple at the moment. Could you ask your commanding officers for leave from the freaking army to look after me?'_

Yeah, like that was going to work.

She groaned, closing her eyes as she leaned back. Thinking.

 _'I have no choice, do I? Probably... probably not.'_

* * *

 **December 15** **th** **, 2022.**

 **Thursday. 18:04.**

It was around two when Alice fell back to sleep, stutters escaping her as her slumber is filled with screams, yelling, crying. Waking her for a third time as she heard the door open and almost slam against the door behind it.

With a jolt, she rose up shakily on her hand. Body numb due to the painkillers, she slowly opened her eyes to see the man from earlier today.

Hugs McGee? Harry Vicky? Happy Sayz?

No names were going through her mind when her vision cleared. She paused, sitting up as she watched her doctor follow behind his heels with a clipboard in hand.

"Mister Vasquez, I'm sure this can wait till tomorrow," he said, walking up beside the taller man as it clicked finally. Hugo Vasquez. The man who offered her a rather serious opportunity only hours ago. Alice could only wonder what he wanted as Hugo stopped at the foot of her bed, a stressed smile on his lips.

"Sorry to break this to you Miss, but time isn't a luxury we own right now," he said, his words strained as he walked around to the chair beside her. "You see, the board are not willing to wait for your answer- they want it, now- but," he paused, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a slim, yellow input chip. It resembled the ones that most advanced workplaces had but it wasn't connected to anything. "We'll take a trial run before you give your final decision."

"What is that," she questioned, staring at the chip as he casually grabbed her hand, placing the small chip in it before closing her fingers around it. It was warm to the touch, but made her shiver involuntarily.

"A portable storage device for ports. A fancier version of a USB to put it simply," he sat down beside her, crossing his legs over one another while making himself comfortable. "The guys at R&D finished that yesterday. Crazy huh. It was like destiny," he chuckled, leaning forward in his chair. "This experimental A.I. will not leave this chip. Once removed from you, he will leave with it."

 _'So... this is just for me to get a feel of_ him _,'_ she thought, biting her lip while looking down to the small chip. After a moment, she looked over to her Doctor as a frown was spread across his face as he tapped his pen against his clipboard. He looked powerless in the situation, despite being a doctor and being respected in this building. His influence only stretched so far when it came to the higher-ups in his company. "What is this man... like?"

"Powerful. Grand. Inspirational."

"Intimidating," she glanced to Valance as he spoke up after Hugo, watching the man give a glance to the doctor before back to her.

"There isn't anything to fear. Nothing will happen, relax," he said.

Her hands nervously moved around the chip, her eyes analyzing it for any visibly defects to stop her from continuing. She found none. The small yellow chip was spotless of scratches, dents and even discolouration. It looked like it had just come out of whatever box it was packed in, straight from the industry line.

It was decided. She closed her eyes for a moment, reopening them as she looked away from it.

She brought it up to her temple, looking Hugo straight in the eye. "I will be expecting compensation if this ruins my mind," she sneered lightly, inserting it into her port before her body spasmed. Valance rushed to her side to help her lie down, positioning her as her body fell limp. The heart monitor beeped slowly, calmly despite what just happened.

"You never said _this_ was going to happen!" Valance yelled, a stern gaze thrown towards Hugo who brought his fist up to his mouth, biting his finger.

"This is a first," he paused, his eyes traveling from her pained expression before back to the doctor. "Write this down. Now!"

Unaware to them. Unaware to even her consciousness, a glitchy rough voice echoed in her mind.

Unnervingly.

' _You're in for one hell of a ride, you little code monkey._ _ **'**_ It spoke, statically. _ **'**_ _Say hello to the King, baby- cause he's here to stay._ _ **'**_

* * *

 _ **I hope you guys like the first chapter to this series. This was beta-read by one of my dearest friends,** **DanniMitchell85. Thank you so much Danni! :)**_

 _ **I haven't spoken to her properly for awhile because of some troubles with both our families as well as the hurricanes in America. My heart goes out to everyone affected by it, either physically, mentally or emotionally.**_

 ** _Here's hoping you all enjoyed this chapter and I am able to post the next one as soon as I can. As well as chapter two to Shuttle Up!_** ** _There is a poll concerning that story on my profile. ;)_**

 ** _My question for you guys: If you could have an AI of any Borderlands character in your head, which would it be?_**

 ** _My answer: Mordecai. Why? Because he seems like great company. He has a great mind, personality, and humour. I'm sure we'd get along well- seeing as I also love animals too! Although I have a fear for large birds. (T.T)_**


	2. Accidental installation

**Chapter 2**

* * *

"Words birds thirds turds." – Normal speaking.

 _[Words birds thirds turds.]_ – Texts / Emails.

 _"Words birds thirds turds._ " - in a phone call / other end of the call.

' _Words birds thirds turds.'_ – Thoughts.

"Words birds thirds turds. **"** – Jack speaking.

' _Words birds thirds turds._ _ **'**_ – Jack talking in her head.

* * *

 **December 15** **th** **, 2022.**

 **Thursday. 22:51.**

Like most days in December, clouds filled the sky while an eerie breeze passed through the brave people that dared to walk through the dark streets of London. When the wind didn't shake you to the bone, the random shriek or burst of laughter was sure to make you tremble. What caused the noise? It was incomprehensible.

Holograms and A.I. were also unexplainable. To the world. To the normal, everyday person. Every company had its secrets and technology that the _normal_ people didn't know about. You could look at any modern movie and stare at the villain's tech, most likely it being some sort of bullshit robot that could kill with a flick of its wrist. Like those two crazy robot dogs from The Kingsman Two. For Hype, it was _Robotics, Weapons_ and _Artificial Intelligence_.

The entire time Jack had formed into the see-through blue haze of his original body, he was able to see and hear everything around him but unable to touch a thing, like a ghost in the night.

The man had been had been testing what he could do. Talking to people was useless- the usually confident male thought they were plain out ignoring him at first. Striking a nerve, he took his anger out on whoever his one-sided conversation was directed at, trying to strangle the first one which proved unsuccessful. It was then that he realized the form he took. The idea of a hologram struck him but after almost half an hour of searching for a source of him, he couldn't find it. Nothing seemed to be lighting up to make him. So, what was he? His mind was there, his emotions were spiralling. But. _What was he?_

He learnt that when he yelled out in frustration, the woman in the bed, who he had been previously ignoring, stirred slightly. Either by pulling a face or physically moving. Since this discovery; he tried to physically touch her, starting with her neck. At his mere touch, she gave the slightest flinch like an electric shock had crossed her skin. Since then, physically contact gave very little results.

The ex-CEO concentrated on the idea of waking her up, either by yelling at her, trying to strangle her whenever his anger got the best of him- which was whenever a new person came into the room and he momentary forgot he could not be seen, trying to communicate with them only to remember he was but a ghost to everyone else.

 **"** C'moooon pumpkin! I gotta admit it was fun at first watching those morons run around like headless skags but- whoa. Now. Never knew how boring hospitals were. Are they tryin' to kill everyone with boredom? **"** A sleek, glitchy voice rung in her ears. It was familiar, but foreign at the same time. An odd combination for the young woman who was used to listening to one-sided automated conversations. **"** Cause I'm dyin' here. Seriously- **WAKE UP ALREADY!"** A sparky voice shrieked near the sleeping girl's face. A frown spread across his face but it quickly turned up into a smirk when she shuffled in her sleep.

A shaky groan escaped Alice's lips, the pounding headache making itself known in her head. She reached up to rub her eye but paused, hissing as the pain seeped back into her system. Oh right. Pain was a thing, after all. During the darkness of her consciousness, she had forgotten the agony of the world and the not-so-subtle pain that she was literally hit with.

Jack only tapped his fingers against his hip while watching the girl, seeing her gold-blue central-heterochronic eyes for the first time. They were new to him. Never really looking people in the eye as they never dared to look at his. _**'**_ _So, the kid does have some interesting features._ _ **'**_ He thought.

The dull beeping of the heart monitor brought the girl back down to Earth, unsure of where she was but it gave her some reassurance that she was safe.

A light grunt escaped the woman as she pushed through the pain to rub her eyes, forcing the other one open as her blurry vision worsened. It took a moment to clear, back to the slight blur she naturally possessed. Despite the clouded vision, the hospital room was familiar enough for her to make the connection. Of course, it wasn't like she was dreaming. It wasn't a nightmare like she hoped. _'I'm not dead...'_

 **"** Yeaaah. Great to see you're finally awake, **"** she visibly stiffened at the voice, looking around cautiously as she saw no one in the small room with her. **"** Woulda been terrific if you didn't pass out right when I made my grand entrance. Cause lemme say. Firstly, that was rude. Secondly, was kinda fun watching blood pour out your head. Thirdly, woulda been nice if somebody told me I was a friggin' hologram- or- or whatever the hell this is! **"** Jack continued to yell right in her ears, a small wince away to her right as it sounded like it was coming from her side. His own frown spread, knowing that if he had a headache from the situation, his would be a hell lot worse. **"** Oh- oh was that too loud for you, pumpkin? _Good._ Cause that's not even half the annoyance I'm feeling here! **"**

Alice reached to her left to the small bedside table near her, feeling for anything but connected with something smooth. With a grunt, she grabbed for it but it was futile. A curse escaped when the cup shatter, signalling a glass of water or something.

 _'Shit. That was loud.'_

Jack simply snickered at her unsuccessful attempt, bringing a hand to his mouth. **"** Way to go, kitten, **"** he cackled, a frown appearing on younger's lips now as she pulled her glasses on the table closer, putting them on. They were the glasses from earlier. At least someone had the decency to remove them from her when she dropped.

He moved closer to her for the moment, waving his hand in front of her face as she blinked her mixed eyes, getting used to the glasses again. Nothing. Not even a flinch. **"** Whoa. You really can't see me, can ya Kiddo? **"** He frowned to himself at this information, moving it forward and watching as it phased through her cheek earning a small flinch from her. Irritated was a simple word to use to describe how he felt. Seeing as Alice was the only person who could hear him, he was at least expecting her to see him as well. But, that didn't seem to be the case. He growled, kicking the wall beside him but watched as it phased through, earning another curse from the man as he threw his arms up in frustration.

"I'm hearing things. I'm seriously going crazy," she murmured to herself as her numbed right hand raised to her port, index finger circling it as she could feel the dry blood crusted around it. _'Just how hard did I hit my head?'_

 **"** Pretty hard, kiddo, **"** Jack added with a smirk. He leaned back against the wall near the bed even though he could not physically touch it. Bent his legs slightly, crossing his arms over his chest while watching her.

Her head snapped to her left where the megalomaniac was heard. Eyes narrowed as she scanned the area before doing the same with the rest of the room. No one. Absolutely no one was in the room with her. He only watched her scan the room, before sighing, running his hand back to push back his hair which he could feel. He could feel himself, but nothing else.

 _'What the literal hell?'_ After a moment, she reached back for the button near her bed to call for anyone. It took her a minute before her impatient streak hit her, pressing the button repeatedly. Jack slipped a chuckle at her action.

The bedridden girl counted the minutes till the silent stumbles of feet could be heard outside her room, raising a brow at the noise as the door swung open to show her doctor, Valance and an unnamed nurse. Confused was a light word to describe how she felt right now, especially with how he slammed the door shut before looking to her as the nurse got to work on the broken glass near her bed. Jack on the other hand, could only follow the two with his eyes, not brothering to speak as he knew he would not get a response.

"How are you feeling?" The doctor asked as he walked across the room to her side. He paused and spotted her blank expression. Unsure of the proper response to it, he chuckled dryly, his blue eyes darting to her temple. "Sorry. Dumb question. Well, what was the last thing you remember?"

"A sudden shock of electricity practically microwaving my brain," she frowned. Her fingers fidgeted absentmindedly, slowly touching each finger to her thumb. Her doctor noticed, most likely making a mental reminded. "Apart from that... I'm peachy," she said, coughing dryly at her own dead tone.

 **"** So, the kitten's got a mouth on her, **"** Jack chuckled humorousness to himself, giving a small toothy smile as he brought his hand to his chin in thought. There was a pause, her eyes glancing around as the doctor followed her example. **"** Gotta fix that. **"**

There was a moment of hesitation in her eyes as Valance looked back to her with a raised brow, looking concerned. "Is something wrong? Please, tell me."

Alice bit her lip, watching the nurse leave the room rather quickly. It took him a moment but after a quick glance between her and the door, he got the message, closing it. It took the brunette a moment to savour her breath, releasing the supple flesh from her teeth as she remembered the thin scab on the corner of it. After a solid five seconds of squirming, she looked up to her doctor with a deadly serious expression across her thin face.

"Doctor... Valance- I- umm... I think I'm going crazy."

He stared.

"Could you expand on that?" He chuckled awkwardly at her words, making her glare and raise her hand to her head but stop mid-way as a line of coughs escaped her; pain was a thing. Totally forgot about that. Again. Seeing her sudden cringe, he moved to pass her the same medicine from before along with a new bottle of water from the pile near the door- she hadn't even noticed it till now. There was even a pile of fruit and sweets of all kinds. It made her wonder who brought them here. "Don't push yourself, alright?"

Alice frowned, downing the pills along with the water as her parched throat was begging for a drink.

"I'm serious. I'm hearing a voice and I'm pretty sure he's got one hell of a mouth-"

 **"** Y'know I **can** hear you, right? **"** Jack snapped at her tone and words, narrowing his eyes at her even though she couldn't see it.

A slow, shaky breath escaped her as she looked up to her doctor, hearing the aggressive voice snapping at her absentminded comment. He gave her a small nod to continue as she had suddenly stopped, seeing her discomfort. He tapped his fingers against his hip, frowning softly as he listened. She wasn't lying, although the cold night air was making her exhausted despite sleeping so much. Could you call it sleeping though if you passed out?

"It's the first time I'm hearing it," she her voice shook, recalling what has happened before everything went black. It was a blur. She reached for her port, tracing the thin metal before looking back to the doctor. "Where is the chip? I could've swore..."

"Mister Vasquez removed it once you were stable. It's with him right now," he spoke slowly, seeing her panic before taking the seat beside her. "Let's put that to the side for the moment. It's quite late, let's continue this conversation in the morning," he gave her a small smile, watching her frown and shuffle in her bed. Jack's mouth twitched at the name, looking to the side as the name sounded familiar but familiar _how_?

"Alright... what about the annoying voice inside my head?" The hologram glared from his spot against the wall, pushing himself away to walk closer to her just so he would be able to stress out his words right in her ear.

 **"** Weren't you taught manners, kid? If I could strange you, kitten, I would- and lemme say, I've tried like, five times, **"** he released an exasperated grunt, walking away from her as he threw his arms into the air again. Something that was quickly becoming a habit as it was the only thing he could do since touch wasn't an available action. **"** This is so damn irritating. Who do I need to kill to end this already? **"**

Valance could only give a dry chuckle at her words, rubbing his neck for a moment before pulling it away. His face became very serious all of a sudden.

"My shift ends in an hour so I'll call Mister Vasquez in the morning. I'm sure he'll have an explanation," he said slowly, smiling slightly in an attempt to comfort her. It wasn't working. Jack had paused at the mention of Vasquez's name, frowning before taking the seat at her bedside moving his ankle to his knee getting comfortable. "Try and get some sleep. Your body needs it. Good night," he gave her a small nod as he rested his hand on the door handle, smiling back to her.

She only gave him a glassy eyed look as he left the room, a shallow sigh escaping her.

Breathing hurt. It really did hurt. She wiggled uncomfortably in the bed, grunting as her eyes landed back on her uneven arm. A glare surfaced for a moment. The pain was bearable, barely. The painkillers coursing through her body were numbing everything to the touch but- she could imagine her fingers still. But nothing moved. Nothing was there to move.

There was a moment of unsettling silence as the lights dimmed before turning off, the soft glow of the moon outside lighting up the small room. Alice gave the silence a chance, a soft sigh escaping her as she stared at the remains of her left arm, frowning as she rubbed away the surfacing tears. She knew crying wasn't the answer but boy did it feel good afterwards.

Of course, she was desperate to see Dan. Clinging onto the small ray of hope that he was still alive, even though deep down inside she knew the chances of surviving a serious head injury with a port was next to nothing. The main reason why only office workers inserted ports into their brains, letting a tech surgeon of all people rig their insides with cybernetics, was because they worked in a place nothing could hurt them. Well, them and their head. Ports were something she didn't think would be a possibility in her lifetime. Almost every tech office workers had a port, making them cheap to buy, a bitch to install.

"Vasquez. Vas-quez. Where have I heard that from? **"** Jack asked himself, tapping his index finger against his chin as he moved his chin to his palm. Alice jolted her out of her moment of self-pity to glance to her left where Jack was. He ignored the action. **"** Son-of-a-, this is gonna annoy the hell outta me. **"**

The young programmer had momentary forgotten about him. Which was saying something when he was awful talkative. She glanced back to the moon, leaning further back into the plush bed. Her last visit to a hospital was for her port placement over a year ago; were the beds always so plush? Before that, it was because of a broken arm. Ha. Memories.

"Come on come on- it's- it's on the tip of my tongue! **"** The brunette could already feel a migraine building just listening to the last piece of sanity leaving her body. After she had properly turned her torso into a more comfortable position, she sighed. **"** C'mon Jack you know this... **"**

Alice paused in her shuffling, seemingly to catch the attention of Jack who had stopped talking, mumbling to himself really. Well, she had a name now. Seeing no point in keeping her eyes open, she closed them relaxing back into the bed. His voice was sort of soothing... till he raised his tone and it glitched and sputtered. That. That was mildly irritating to her, considering she had sustained two head injuries rather recently.

"Could you please be quiet? My head is killing me," she murmured more to herself than him, not entirely sure if she would even get a response as she pushed through the pain to touch her temple. Jack's face snapped from his absent staring out the window to another glare directed at her.

 **"** Sorry pumpkin- I didn't quite hear that. You're telling **me** to shut up? Is- is that what you're sayin'? **"** He questioned, standing up and over her bed getting into her personal space. Even though the action of intimidation was unknown to her. **"** Do you have any idea who the _hell_ you're talkin' too? **"** His voice was laced with hostility, something Alice didn't quite catch on or even care about right now as fatigue had hit her.

"Yes, yes, and no," she spoke, answering him with a small shaky wave of her right hand After a moment, she yawned and she tugged the covers a little closer to her form. Today was just a long, horrible day; even if she had only been awake for a few hours of it. "Enough... please. I'm going to sleep. Night-"

 **"** Kiddo I'm not done ye- **"**

"Well, I am," she bit back the snarky comment, her head pounding. "I'm mentally, emotionally and physically exhausted, my head is killing me plus throw in the loss of part of my arm most of my sanity. At least let me sleep like the dead," she spoke back, uncomfortably moving her arm to cover her eyes as she couldn't help the feel of eyes on her; it was unnerving. The staring spooking her core, almost positive she had a concussion or something. The number of tests she would be taking tomorrow, she could feel it. "Or just kill me like you've been trying to do... that sounds fun."

Jack paused at her proposal, his gaze stern at her form as he took note of her physical form. The cuts and bruises were plain as day across her collar, neck, face and arms, some deep or long enough to require stitches. He didn't entirely care where they came from, but he was interested to find out. He knew she wouldn't talk from seeing her aggression towards her own doctor. He caught on from the nurses that someone else was in the crash she was in. But every time someone dared to speak more, someone else shut them up with a glare or with a verbal snap. He could only assume the man didn't make it.

Alice's nerves spiked up just waiting for a response from him. When she didn't get one, she tried to turn onto her side the best she could.

The moon through the gap in the white curtains lit up the room, but left it dark enough for her to sleep. New moons were amazing in her opinion, but she always had bad luck on those nights. But everyone had their superstitions, right? Like unlucky a magpie- unless there was two. Then they were lucky.

 **"** Pumpkin, I've been tryin' to kill ya for the last two hours. So, suck it up and grow a pair of lady balls, **"** her face flushed slightly at his wording, frowning as she tried to turn away more from the voice known as Jack but couldn't, her left arm was still held still but the leather belts kept it from touching the bed. The blunt sentence made her uncomfortable, especially when his voice had no body to connect it to.

Once she was comfortable, the feeling of sleep pulled her back from checking for any messages, letting it consume her as Jack seemed to be talking to himself as it took her.

 **"** Execute plan: find somethin' I can do, **"** there was a pause of silence in the room as the sound of Alice's soft hums dominated over the ticking clock in the corner. **"** Assquezs or whatever the hell his name is- better have a damn good explanation to what the hell is going on... **"**

* * *

 **December 16** **th** **, 2022.**

 **Friday. 01:45.**

"I'm in position," a hushed voice spoke from the top of a large oak tree a straight mile from the hospital, faintly visible from the moonlight. "I don't see anything important 'bout this girl. Looks pretty normal to me," he murmured through his earpiece, pulling his sniper off of the tree branch as he saw nothing interesting.

 _"Quit playing around Mordecai. Clearly, she isn't normal if Hyperion downloaded her files off the system... you're screwing with me, right?"_

"No- I'm serious, Lil. La señorita looks like she's been through hell. The info said a car accident- as far I can tell, looks like it," he moved his sniper to his back, grabbing the beer bottle he had balancing on a branch to take a swing of it. "I dunno why Hyperion have their eyes on her. Like I said, she looks normal."

 _"… is that it?"_

"Far as I can tell, yeah," there was a pause between the two, the man named Mordecai taking another sip of his drink.

 _"Alright. Get back here as soon as you can- don't leave anything behind. Even empty drink bottles-"_

"I know. Their tech ain't as advanced as ours- but some things they are," he grunted, stuffing his empty bottles into his back before standing up from his spot on the tree. "It'll take me a couple hours."

 _"Got it."_

* * *

 ** _Hope you enjoyed the chapter guys! Please review, favourite and follow!_**

 ** _My question for this chapter is: What's your favourite drink to drink while doing- anything really?_**

 ** _Answer: Mine would be peach ice tea or Mountain Dew!_**


	3. Release

Chapter 3

* * *

 **December 16** **th** **, 2022.**

 **Friday. 07:36.**

* * *

Bruises never fade straight away. They went at a painfully sore pace, like a snail in the summer's heat. The sun was barely up which was rare this early in the winter's dawn. The clock by the door ticked loudly around the room, a fair competition against the one at her work where it dared anyone to pass under it and risk being its next victim.

The next morning felt worse for Alice. Much worse. The drugs that were used to stop the coughing had worn off sometime during the night, leaving her with a dull ache in her chest and throat. The loud shouting down the hallway from her door wasn't helping her uncomfortable either. They sounded angry. As annoyed as you could be surrounded by sick and injured people.

Jack was entertaining himself by phasing his torso through the door to watch the event unfold.

 **"** Maaaan. They're really going at it out there, **"** he chuckled, a small groan escaping girl as she used what little strength she had in her right arm to yank the covers over her head to continue her sleep. **"** Mornin', sunshine. Looks like your doc grew a backbone overnight and- AND IT'S GONE! God _damn_ that was brutal, **"** Jack winced while pulling his head back enough to watch Alice peek out from under her blankets to peer at the door. **"** Looks like you're gonna need a new doc. **"**

"What do you mean by that?" She moved to sit up listening to him, rubbing her eyes awkwardly one at a time before the door slammed open. The hologram had pulled himself back into the room. He headed to the window with an annoyed grunt as he leaned back against it, seeing the man of murder already heading in the direction of her room previously.

Both figures watched the same gentleman from yesterday enter the room, the air of power still surrounding him as he walked towards the bed holding a suitcase in hand. He spotted Alice already awake and sitting up when he entered. He smiled and took the position at her bedside.

"Looks like you slept well, princess," he spoke while sitting down, looking rather pleased with himself while the bedridden girl only rose a brow at his words.

 _'Princess? Who the hell does he think he's talking to? I'm no princess of his... probably doesn't even have one. He's kind of a dick.'_ She questioned, frowning as this seemed to only make Jack chuckle while Vasquez seemed to rethink his words, a more awkward cough escaping him. "Where is Doctor Valance?" She questioned. Hugo only gave her a dry chuckle.

"Right. Him. Well," Hugo stubbled with his words for a moment. "Valance mentioned you woke up last night, no physically damage... well, anymore," he let out a nervous chuckle as her expression stayed stony, the same one she had presenting him last night. She frowned more when she noticed him avoid the question.

 **"** You don't talk to women much, do ya buddy? **"** Jack smirked from her side, shaking his head with a smug look across his face as Hugo pressed his hands together after placing his suitcase down on his lap.

 _'Clearly not,'_ she answered his question in thought, drowning out his chuckling at her answer as she turned herself better to face Hugo as he continued.

"He also mentioned you hearing a voice. Can you still hear him?" He asked, watching her nod her head meekly as a small grin stretched across his face while sitting up straighter. "Can he hear or see me?"

 **"** Wish I couldn't cupcake. You're pretty frinkin' ugly. Kinda like a skag I once ran over with my car. Heh, **"** calmly, she nodded her head through his rant. She gave him a small smile as well although inside she was chuckling slightly at his words. Self admittedly, she had always had an odd sense of humour. The normal knock-knock jokes never tickled a rib with her.

"He can- both, actually."

The suit nodded while bringing his hands to his knees, intertwining his fingers while straightening up in his chair again.

"Does this voice have a name?" Hearing this, her eyes glanced to her right in the direction of Jack who simply narrowed his at Hugo, pushing himself off of the invisible wall behind him to jab a finger into his own chest.

 **"** I, am Handsome, Goddamn Jack. Now, tell me what the hell is going on? **"** he raved, his nostrils flared in either annoyance, or irritation... probably both but she couldn't tell from his voice alone.

"Jack with an adjective in front of it," she spoke slowly, unsure what to say really when she could physically hear the anger in his voice. "He wants to know what the heck is going on... as do I," watching the grin spread across Hugo's face while chuckling.

This made her move back cautiously while Jack only moved closer in an attempt to intimidate the man who couldn't see him.

 **"** You must be kidding me. Are- are you laughing at me right now? You find this funny. HA. Yeah, it's friggin' _hilarious_. So, please. Tell me if I'm wrong. I'd love to tell you what happened to the last guy who told me I was wrong, **"** Jack sneered at the man in front of him, a frown stretched across his own mouth while Vasquez wiped his eye with a smile. His vision turning to the young woman.

Taking in her stiff position, he had a good idea what had caused this. Which was enough to make him more confident in the fact that R&D had outdone themselves, yet again.

"I'm not laughing at his question- or anything like that," he defended himself, completely unaware of the megalomaniac looming over him with his hand ghosted over his throat in an attempt to scare him. "It's just. There was one man I always looked up and admired to throughout my time working where I am. The most impressive man I have ever known-"

 **"** He's gonna say me, **"** Jack hummed while pulling his hand away from the man, crossing his arms in front of him with a smirk before dropping back onto the bed behind him, sitting. It didn't move with his weight and Alice couldn't even tell he had done it.

"-Handsome Jack."

 **"** You idiots always say me. Still can't figure out who he is though, **"** the handsome man mussed to himself, a streak of annoyance in his voice as he drew his hand back to fix his hair even though it could not be moved by the elements in its current state. He glanced to the woman beside him. "Any ideas?

"I would say we had a special relationship. A partnership if you will," the chuckle Jack made when he said that made her think otherwise. "Which is why I plan to be with you every step of this project," Hugo said while tapping on the card on her side table, the one he had given her before. "With Jack already inserted into your core, there isn't much left now to do apart from signing your paperwork," he gave her an almost shit-eatting smile while pulling his suitcase open, handing her the same paperwork from yesterday along with a bright, gold encrusted pen.

She took the pen hesitantly, looking at the first dotted line before looking back up to him.

"I'm sorry but that can't be it-"

"That's it- no wait. I forgot one more thing," he said while reaching back into his suitcase, pulling out a small blue box before handing it to her. "Recently washed and disinfected."

Curiously, she opened up the small box to see a clean set of blue contacts. Alice glanced up to him as he offered her a small pocket mirror from his breast pocket, which she accepted. Once comfortable, she picked picking up the first one with the label 'right' below it.

"Your E-Tacts. Monthly uses so your next set should arrive to you on the fifteenth," Hugo looked away as she fitted the first one in effortlessly, blinking twice before looking back into the mirror as she took notice of the lack of gold in her right eye. It covered up the gold in her heterochronic eye; making it a pale, icy blue. "All tacts are a basic colour so we couldn't adjust them for your... umm..."

 _'He has the same condition. Maybe he just doesn't know the name.'_

"Central heterochronic eyes. Think of heterochronic, two colours then add the word 'central' which means two in one. It's cool," she explained while blinking her right eye a few times to make sure it was in place. Her eyes paused as she noticed something behind her in the mirror.

 **"** Ha. Just like mine babe but... different. Not as cool though, **"** Jack chuckled watching her stick her finger in her eye, unflinching. It took the man a moment to notice her staring straight at him in the mirror. At first, he wasn't sure till he tilted his head. She copied. **"** Oh-hooo~ kiddo can you- can you see me? Ho _ly_ damn you can, can't you? **"** He grinned from ear to ear, waving his hand in front of her as she followed it. Jack almost yelled in glee.

Alice tore her eyes away from the handsome man behind her, closing her right eye noticing him disappearing from her sight in the mirror. It was a little unnerving watching a man disappear from her vision just from closing one of her eyes, but with her concussion, she wasn't going to think too much about it.

"How does he look?" Hugo asked, chuckling at her expression as he watched her odd eyes dart to him before back at the mirror. After a moment, she inserted the left one before her eyes stopped on Jack. He had moved his arms behind his neck into a more relaxed position.

"Like a hologram of some sort. Blue, a little glitchy. See-through. No entirely sure but it looks like he has these brackets on his temple, chin... and sides of his face. As well as what seems to be a port on his neck- under his ear," she paused in her thoughts as her hand moved to her own temple. Her eyes wondered to her hand, then back to Jack for a moment before the other man taking up the seat beside her. "Does it matter?"

"Yes. Do you have any questions," slowly, she shook her head before looking down to the paperwork.

"Well, I have one."

"And what would that be?"

Her eyes wondered to the man behind her, feeling his eyes on her. Jack caught her eyes, smirking in reply seeing her flustered expression. Alice quickly looked back to Hugo, frowning.

"Is there an off switch or something?"

* * *

 **February 9** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Thursday. 13:01.**

* * *

"I'm really sorry that you guys had to come pick me up."

"Pssh, had to? I've been dying to visit you the entire time you were in that hellhole," a light, silvery voice laughed, a small brunette attached to it was sitting beside Alice in the car. An old Jag which was doing well for being over ten years old. "Who the hell was that fucker who kept shooing us away at the door?"

"Maggie, calm. He's one of the heads of this projects," Alice smiled softly as her friend fidgeted with the metal arm in her lap, running her fingers over the bends and groves as it was such a fascinating thing for someone unfamiliar with modern technology of this sort. "Hugo Vasquez."

A small grunt was heard from Jack who had seated himself in the empty shotgun seat, feet up on the car's dashboard, crossing them at the heel. **"** That guy pisses me off. Cocky son-of-a-taint gonna get what's comin' to him one day. **"**

"Yeah. Him. I wanted to sock him in da face the moment I met him," Margret said with a small shrug, bending Alice's arm back and forth at the elbow joint.

It was decided they would remove another chuck of her arm to just above the elbow in order to install a joint. According to the man doing the surgery, it would be a lot easier to adapt to if they also did the joint. She took his advice and agreed to the removal to install a joint. The metal was thin, like the weight of a normal arm but the annoying, pale yellow colour put her off on wearing tee shirts just yet.

"What do you think about that dick, Judy?"

"He was... rather pushy," a soft-spoken voice answered from the driver's seat, glancing back in the rear-view mirror to the two other girls in the back with the same blue eyes. They all sported blue eyes and brown hair, although their styles and attitudes put them apart from each other. For one, Alice now had a robotic arm and her eyes were blue-gold without the contacts in. "I don't like him that much."

"See? Even Judy thinks he's a dick," Margret lazily gave the two the thumbs up, her eyes still trained on the metal arm in her lap as they pulled up in a small parking lot of an apartment complex. It was near London, not far enough into it for the prices to spike up but far enough in it for friends and family to call her if there was a terrorist attack in it, to make sure she wasn't involved. "I think he should legally change his name to something more fitting like... like..."

 **"** Assquez! I've called it ladies! **"** Jack called back at the girls, grinning to himself as he moved his arms behind his head.

"Maybe Fucko? Like, ya know. Word play on Hugo?" chimed Margret. When she got no reply, she added. "No good?"

With a small frown, Alice moved her hand to her temple with a dead look on her face, knocking the side of her port and with a shudder, Jack vanished.

Margret, the older twin, snickered at her friend who moved to pinch the bridge of her nose. Oh, how thankful Alice was for learning that trick. Maybe getting hit in the head by a bedpan and learning that trick was worth the splitting headache afterwards.

"Headache?"

"Big one."

Minutes after they parked, the headed up to the fourth floor of the complex to her apartment with Margret leading. The door swung open with a deep squeak, reminding the tallest of how long it had been since she last stepped into it.

They all headed in, each one of them checking a room to make sure the electric was back. The living room wasn't heavily furnished. Two settees with a coffee table, flat screen TV and a plotted plant beside a bookcase full of movies, video games and the odd tech book here and there. Grey walls with a black carpet.

By the large windows in the living room there was a grand piano in the corner, black wood and a couple music sheets lay on the seat. The current owner of the instrument could only glance at it, looking back to her friends who stretched out on their hunt for an empty room.

The kitchen was no better with minimal appliances. Stove, fridge freezer, a few counters plus a toaster, microwave and small red-orange kettle in the corner. The tiles mirrored the living room.

"I spy light!"

"The lights work here too," Judith followed her sister's example, leaving Alice with the last light in Daniel's old room, cluttered with old pieces of tech and dirty clothes covering the floor.

"All good," she continued the line of love of lights, coming back into the kitchen joined living room to find both of the identical twins throwing out everything in her fridge. "What are you two doing?" she asked, chuckling lightly at how the two were throwing absolutely everything from her fridge freezer. Well, except the Lego shaped ice.

"Removing this mouldy shit from inside here," the twin with the short scene cut her spoke, squeaking before throwing an old pile of bacon out. "Oh. My God. That was disgusting!"

"Excuse me for being hospitalised for like almost two months," the tech genius rolled her icy eyes at the two chefs, letting them be before grabbing her old model phone with her real hand, pulling up her app of 'Just Eat'. "I'm ordering pizza. Meat feast sound good with everyone?" she called while walking over to get settee, plopping down after awkwardly moving to her side. She hated using it. It felt so awkward and weird, especially seeing as she couldn't physically feel anything with the arm.

"Anything with pineapples and I will personally rape you," Margret threatened, throwing a random Lego ice cube over the counter and into the living room. Alice only chuckled, wiggling more into her little black leather settee to avoid any more incoming projectiles.

"I'd like to see you try," she murmured back to herself, ordering the pizza for the three of them.

The rest of the night was spent chatting about whatever had been happening in their lives as of lately. Margret and Alice hadn't seen each other in over a year while Judith and her only met up for Halloween last year. Their family restaurant had been going smoothly, their father was now clear of cancer and Judith had recently gotten engaged- while she was in the hospital no less. Had got the ring in the post along with a note. It made her chuckle knowing that's how her brother rolled. He probably didn't even know she had said yes.

The cybernetic girl couldn't help but force a smile at the mention of love, biting the inside of her lip as the twins continued the conversation without her till it changed onto a subject she could enjoy. By midnight, all three of the girls were ready to pass out. Taking the invitation to sleep over, the twins took over the living room with extra blankets and pillows while Alice retired to her room, closing the door behind her.

Changing was a real struggle, getting her arm through her shirtsleeves was hard considering the dull pain she had in her limbs from today's physically training.

Her robotic arm was the hardest, considering the joints and fingers continuously got caught on the fabric. Today was no difference, removing it was a pain as she whacked her head back into the wall behind her when she tried to force the joint loose. It was a good model, if not a little old so force was required sometimes.

"Fuck," Alice cursed, moving away from the wall she had just head-butted to continue trying to remove the freaking robotic arm attached to her.

"Language, **"** she gave the man a small short wave before continuing to try and detach the arm just as he glitched into her vision. **"** Aren't you forgetting a clamp? God damnnit, don't break it! I'm sure that costs more than this apartment! **"** he called from his position lying across her bed, his head being propped up by his palm, elbow in one of her pillows, legs crossed. He looked pretty comfortable in her overly messy room.

"I'm pretty sure it does," she shuffled uncomfortably at first spotting Jack on her bed, depressurising the clamp before removing the arm and placing it by her computer. Once she had singlehandedly plugged in the connector to the small port in the forearm, a small red light appeared. It was charging. "Good," she smiled to herself moving to her closet to grab a shirt to sleep in. She paused, looking back to Jack with an unsteady smile as she could see him surveying her room with a tight frown across his lips. "Umm... make yourself at home, I guess."

By this point, Jack had sat up and studied the room around him, looking more and more disturbed as he took in every corner of her room. The furniture was nothing special. The bedframe was stained oak along with her closet, drawers and desk. Her desk consisted of duel screens for her computer and a small portable printer. The only noticeable personal items around her room was stacks of DVDs, videos, games and small figures from different franchises, Pokémon, Nemo and Simpsons being the main ones. And biggest personal belonging she owned was the medium sized Minecraft plush stationed on her favourite pillow.

Her actual room was painted a blood orange with a grey carpet which you could barely see through all the dirty shirts and jeans on the floor. Although she wouldn't admit it out loud, even Alice was embarrassed he was seeing her room like this.

 **"** Your room's a dump, **"** he spat out, moving his legs closer to himself as he shifted himself into the centre of the bed. **"** Aren't women meant to be clean freaks or something, sweet cheeks? **"** He questioned, throwing her a look of disgust again before pulling his eyes away to stare at the random band posters she had on her walls. Awolnation, Panic! At the disco, Icon for hire, Marianas Trench and a couple from Fall out boy. Most of the bands she liked were popular over five years ago. Most of the songs now a days were about politics. So boring really for people her age.

"First things first. Don't call me that," she blushed slightly at that new nickname, glaring at a small grin spread across his lips before she started to pick up random pieces of clothing from her throw to throw one handed into the laundry basket. After nearly two months, it was getting easier to use one hand. But now she was being forced to use both again. "Another thing- according to your stories, you should know how little time us programmers actually spend at home," she bit back another comment, but she did enjoy when his grin dropped into a smirk.

 **"** Yeah. That's a finished chapter in my book. But hey- I blackmailed and murdered my way up the corporate ladder, made myself into the hero I am today, **"** he said, a wave of his hand as he vanished with a hitch. He reappeared beside her in blue snow, quickly glitching himself into his form as he stood right in front of her face. **"** You kid, I see protentional in you- you're already halfway there. You have shit on your hitlist, **"** he half-lied to get her attention before he disappeared again, this time reappearing beside her desk. **"** Just gotta take some risks. Stab a back or two- you'll do great. **"**

"I don't plan to ever kill someone, only in a life-or-death situation," she threw him a frown, sitting down on the end of her bed before letting herself drop back onto it. There was a moment of silence between the two, Alice's eyes dropping shut as the silence was unnerving seeing as his breathing couldn't be heard unless he purposely made the noise from anger or laughter.

 **"** Ally, baby, lemme break it to you, niceee and slooow, **"** Jack taunted her, standing behind her as he leaned over, looking straight down as she opened one eye to stare straight up at him. **"** There's gonna be a time in your life where you're gonna have to shoot, stab or gut someone to survive. I mean, the first time I ever killed someone was to save my own skin, **"** he smirked, putting his hands on his hips before giving her the finger guns. **"** Either they'll shoot you, or you'll shoot 'em. Make a choice cupcake. You already have two holes in your head. Don't make it three, seeing as we've figured out that if you go, I go. You know what I'm sayin'? **"** the response he got was a silent stare, his smirk turning into a frown as he rubbed his forehead for a moment.

 **"** Well- I'm out. You're boring me," he grunted, moving to jump off of the bed before twisting back at the hips to look to her. "Talk to ya later, babe. Don't have too much fun now without me, m'kay. Pshew pshew, **"** with the finger gun affects to make a larger impact on what he just said, he was out and in the back of her mind.

She would be lying if she said what he lectured didn't bother her. It actually did. A lot.

The crime rate had been steadily rising for the last ten years, but of course the law was stupid about manslaughter. Even if you were defending yourself, you would somehow still get some sort of punishment. But at the same time, she didn't think that was what he was talking about. He was a confusing, arrogant yet strong man.

With a low sigh, she stood up and headed to the apartment's lone bathroom to remove her contacts. England was pretty safe, but there was no sanctuary in this world.

At least, she hadn't found one yet.

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter three of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 ** _Also, huge thank you to my first review from 'Ozuhananas' and to answer your question- yes. There will be more characters from TFTB apart from Assiter. From the chapters ahead I have already wrote, two more have been added._**

 ** _This chapter's question is: If you could specialise in any skill- any at all and have resources to learn it. Which would you specialise in?_**

 ** _My answer: I would specialise in Art. Drawing. Because I've always had vivid images in my head but my hands have never- NEVER been able to get it down on paper properly._**


	4. Explosive Valentines

Chapter 4

* * *

 **February 14** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Tuesday. 10:21.**

Today was either the bane of the singles or the long-awaited holiday for the couples. For the recent or semi-recent unoccupied. It was a stab in the back. To put it lightly.

Valentine's day. Usually, Alice didn't even notice the day but with her friends invading her apartment every single second of every single day since she came home, only six days but you still got the point.

The last couple of days had been the hardest for her. Packing up Daniel's things for his parents. It was the least she could do after not being able to go to his funeral; stupid Vasquez. He was completely unbelievable. Since she had left, he had been making her life... more difficult.

Daily reports were a pain. Especially when she was told they would be weekly. It felt weird writing down everything she had done that day. From shopping, to practicing her piano and coding, to even writing letters to her grandparents since neither of them knew how to text and never checked their emails.

 **"** You know _pumpkin_ , that piano is _really_ starting to get annoying **,"** Jack spoke from across the room, spread out across her settee comfortably while she played the tune of her favourite music sheet song. It was unbelievably simple for her left hand. A minute-long song with a lot of pauses. **"** If you wanted to make me happy you could always- well I _dunno_... play a different song, **"** she chuckled with a small shake of her head, entertained just by watching the blue man try to throw a pillow at her, only to realize after the first attempt that he couldn't. **"** Son-of-a-taint! **"**

"Ha," she smirked straight back at his scowl, looking back to her piano absentmindedly playing the song before pulling her hand away and back to her laptop she had been staring at for the last twenty minutes. "Well, you could always help me write this irritating report."

 **"** And tell me, kitten, why I would want to do your shitty work? It looks boring. Suck it up, **"** he shooed her away with a flick of his wrist, walking over to the large windows beside her as he phased his head out of it. **"** This place is too damn calm. Just, ehh- don't get me wrong. I'm all for peace and crap but this is so damn _boring_ ," he pulled his head back in order to press his hands against the glass along with his face, staring at the city below them. **"** Somebody get hit by a car or something! **"**

She chuckled lightly at his words, shaking her head more at herself than him as she actually found his humour somewhat... funny.

Looking back to her report, she frowned. The cybernetic arm was doing fine, slow to use but otherwise, no complaints. Oh, there was something she needed to report those.

 _[February 14th, 2023. Tuesday. 10:30. Nothing unusual to report. Jack seems to be pretty bored being locked in my apartment all day with me so I'm thinking of things to do in public. The idea of walking in public still frightens me because of my arm but since it is still February, I can wear a coat and gloves without being stared at weirdly. My cybernetics are working well, nothing to report. Learning to play the piano (I have already said this multiple time in my last couple of emails) while I get used to it. Work starts tomorrow so I am not looking forward to that. Last thing before I end this. I will start looking for a roommate as soon as I can. The beginning of next month hopefully. This apartment is too big for one person, plus I want to pay rent like a normal person so I will be needing one.]_

Closing her laptop, she glanced over to the small box she had placed on the piano earlier. Pulling it into her lap, she opened it, dryly smiling at the photo that greeted her. A photo of Daniel and her at their first university party.

Daniel looking handsome with longer scene hair and a lip piercing, earning a small chuckle from her as she had met him during his emo phase. Tight black tee-shirt and maroon vest, jeans and trainers.

And there she was. Sitting in front of him while he had his arms wrapped around her shoulders as she placed a kiss on his cheek. Her chocolate brown hair came down to her stomach, tied in a side ponytail while she wore a comfortable black Skelanimals dress complete with pink bow around her waist. It was a present from her eldest brother for getting into university. He could be nice when he wanted to be, which was a rare occasion.

She placed the photo beside the music sheet before putting the box back on top of the piano. Her hair had a choppier, razor cut look to it now, thanks to the accident.

Jack watched this from the corner of his eye in silence from the window. His eyes turned back to the streets below as she started the first line of that same, annoying song she kept playing. This time though, she started murmuring the lyrics to herself.

She didn't mind the style of her hair now, really. It was easier to deal with but having long hair her entire life made her feel out of place.

"I am damaged. Far too damaged," Alice bit down on the small scar on her lip, tracing it for the moment before continuing the line. "But you're not beyond repair," she chuckled dully at the lyrics, shaking her head at how ironic Daniel's favourite song was. He played it weekly to stay sharp. He had a very nice, soothing voice like the original singer- but a tad lower pitched.

She took a deep breath, her fingers finding their place again.

"Stick around here. Make things better. 'Cause you beat me fair and square, " she played the next notes, tilting her head back as she released another unsteady breath. "Please stand back now... little further," she smiled softly, recalling the play he had forced her to watch during their second year of university. It was a good play, considering the main love pairing died when the guy blew himself up in this song.

"Don't know what this thing will do. Hope you'll miss me. Wish you'd kiss me," her voice trembled lightly, her head shaking softly to stop herself as she was also surprised Jack hadn't commented on her voice shuddering. "Then you'd know I worship you. I'll trade my life for yours," she bit her lip for the second, playing the notes harsher than they were supposed to be played. "And once I disappear!" _'Please don't do this!'_ "-Clean up the m-mess down here," her voice dropped as she stopped to wipe away a tear, sniffling now as her chest felt tight.

Hearing a light groan, she glanced up noticing Jack watching her, mentioning with his hands to hurry up already. **"** Don't stop now. You're getting to the good part, **"** a soft cough escaped her, throwing a glare towards Jack as she recalled playing the song before- the one on YouTube and him commenting on how messy the explosion must have been since he blew himself up.

Back to now, she knew he meant to continue to the death scene.

 **"** Come on, baby, **"** the hologram teased, grinning from ear to ear as he moved himself away from the window. The man jumped up and sat on the piano, hands behind him as he faced the window. **"** Sing for your daddy! **"**

"Oh my God. You're so weird and that's so cringey," she shook her head, smiling lightly at his grin before playing the next note. "Our love is God," spoken softly, building up with each time she repeated it. "Our love is God... our love is God... our love is Goooooood..." she smiled at the last part, stopping to play the last note one more time before closing the piano.

She muttered softly to herself.

"Say hi to God..."

 **"** Hey Ki- **"**

Suddenly, a large explosion shook the Earth around them cutting Jack off, her stool toppling to the floor along with her while the AI jumped to his feet. In seconds he was pressed against the window with his face against the glass, the apartments down the road on the corner of her street collapsed, a thick cloud of dust in its wake. It fell down with a loud rumble, taking the surrounding shops and houses with it.

"Oh my God- what happened?!" Alice yelled as the sound wave died down to a tremor. The young programmer pulled herself to her knees, catching sight of the complex falling with wide eyes. "Oh my God... oh no- oh SHIT," she cursed as she pulled herself up, copying Jack's position at the window as the sound of sirens could be heard faintly in the distance. No doubt someone had called 999 the moment the explosion occurred.

 **"** Now that's what I'm talkin' about! Damn **-** well, that's what I call timing. I would pay to see that again! Huh, pumpkin! I'm guessing that ain't a common occurrence here, **"** The former CEO chuckled at her expression, watching her throw him a glare over her shoulder but stayed rooted in place, watching the scene unfold as people came running to the scene to help the people who were trapped in the wreckage. Few people surrounding the scene were in clear shock, while more level-headed individuals took physically action.

Slowly, she shook her head, biting down on the scar in the corner of her lips as she stood up from her spot.

After a moment had passed the adrenaline kicked it as she rushed to her phone to call the twins, only to find both of their phones out of service- they were out getting shopping! Alice wondered just how they could be out of service down the street from here- thankfully in the opposite direction of the disaster.

The young code monkey released an annoyed grunt at this, throwing her phone down on the settee as Jack glitched himself back onto it with his feet up on the coffee table.

 **"** Just letting ya know, your singing sucked hairy balls- like, I've heard screaming bandits sing better th- **"**

"Now's not the time for your stupid teasing!" She yelled back at him, dodging the glare he shot back at her while standing up. "People just died! People just don't- don't die here- I dunno where the hell or when the fuck you're from but-b-but civilians like **myself** live peaceful l-lives working to survive, things like this just don't-" her voice croaked as she bit back a sob, looking back to the smoke that was arising from the mess as she quickly ducked back to the settee grabbing her phone. Recalling her friends but got the same results as before. "OhmyGod..."

 **"** Look. Kitten. Calm down or you're gonna have a panic attack- trust me, those things aren't pretty to watch, so stop, you know. Like, _now_. **"** Jack warned with a deep frown. He raised his hands watching the woman in front of him pace with a look of dread across her face.

"I-I can't I-I just-" she stuttered, grabbing her arms and rubbing trying to calm her nerves- but it wasn't working.

"Got a secret? Can you keep-" When her phone rang, she quickly answered pulling it to her ear as she took shallow breaths.

"Judy? Maggie?"

 _"Alice what the hell just happened- are you okay?"_ Margret questioned on the other end of the phone, Alice's heart calming down just from her voice. _"We're on our way back. We heard the explosion from the store- where was it?"_

"I'm fine- I- I just- it happened down the road- you know the apartment complex which blocks t-the sunrise in the living room," she asked, sitting down in the middle of where she stood as she pulled her head to her knees. Her friend on the other end of the call hummed, knowing said building. "Please-please get back here. Please."

 _"We're coming- we're coming just- take some deep breathes. Calm down,"_ following her instructions, she took deep breaths as she placed her head further into her knees. _"We'll be there in ten. Don't move."_

The call ended, tones replacing her voice as the phone dropped from her hand. It took her a couple of minutes to calm down, bringing her hands up to wipe the line of blood she had unconsciously made while biting her lip. When Jack chuckled, she turned her head back to him, giving him a glare as he hadn't moved from the settee but instead went back to watching the horror movie she had put on for him, just to make him stop complaining about having nothing to do.

 **"** What? **"** He grunted, crossing his ankles without a shred of care for the people outside in the accident. He had seen worse after all. An explosion was something that happened hourly on Pandora- something he normally caused with construction but that wasn't the point. Something like that, it was only entertaining for the first ten seconds before it became old news.

"You're absolutely no help at all," she scolded the man across her. Not bothering to stand up, she crawled over to the window as the fire engines were already making their way into the scene, clearing the area as well as looking for survivors. Her eyes froze when the first victim was removed from the rubble, hands flying her to her mouth as she saw a young child then its mother being pulled out. "Oh my God..."

"Better turn away cupcake. It's only gonna get worse, **"** the former CEO called, his eyes trained on the TV which had just turned to a torture scene. His smirk quickly dropped into a frown, eyes narrowing on the sight in front of him. So barbaric methods were thought of here, but seemingly made into movies for others' entertainment. It wasn't like they didn't have Echo shows but the horror shows they had were just recordings of psychos killing each other for their own entertainment. **"** Ugh- now that's obviously fake- when you kick someone's box in - their brain doesn't splatter against just one wall! It's more like an explosion where it gets _absolutely_ everywhere. **"**

"You're vile," Alice tore her eyes away from the scene outside, unable to look at the TV because of the vivid picture he painted.

He only smirked at her comment, waving his hand at her in a gesture of dismissing to enjoy the crappy movie that was playing.

"I think I'm going to be sick," she stumbled to her feet, her kitten socks mewled slightly as she rushed to the bathroom. The bright orange kittens' socks had to be the best gift her younger older brother had ever given her. They mewled if you stomped hard enough.

"Pull the seat up- makes things a hell lot easier! **"** Jack snickered at the sound of her dry heaving.

" _SHIIT_!"

He paused, hearing her curse along with a crash. Just what did she do now?

She had tripped and landed in the bath pulling the random things around her bath with her.

Unable to resist the temptation, he headed into the bathroom, spotting her quickly just as she pulled the shower curtain off of her herself, which she had pulled down with her. He exploded with laughter, holding his stomach as the sight was too much for him. Although the blood dripping slowly from her lip was a concerning factor, his laughter was too much to bare at her shocked/annoyed expression. **"** O-Oh my God did you just- did you just fall in your tub- gahahaha- se-seriously! What- what the hell d'you think you're doing? God, you look so stupid! **"**

The girl tried her best to throw him the middle finger but having trapped her real arm under herself while the other took down the curtain- whacking against the side of the tub with force enough to smack something out of place, she couldn't move either of them.

"Yeah, lotta help you are," she grunted while adjusting herself to remove her arm from underneath her hip. Once that was done, she eased herself out of the bath, being careful not to fall back in it. "Ow- triple freaking ow."

The hologram snickered at her pain, examining the robotic arm as she moved its fingers slowly seeming fine after practically slamming itself against the side of the tub.

"That was a good laugh. Thanks for that but seriously- babe. I couldn't help you even if I wanted to, I'm just a hot boogeyman but that defeats the point that I wouldn't even help you in the first place. **"**

Alice rolled her blue eyes at the man, cracking her neck rather painfully before putting everything back where it originally was.

" _My hero_ ," she sneered, putting the curtain back above her. It wasn't like he was going to help anyway. He was a dick.

"Aww. Thanks cupcake, that means a lot, **"** he hummed, his own eyes watching her balance on the edge of the plastic bath to put the penguin curtains back. He sniggered when she almost fell again, catching the glare she threw him over her shoulder. She couldn't believe this man could be a leader. He was so childish. So short-tempered. So... violent! **"** Damn. You are _useless,_ **"** did she mention unsupportive?

"Oh, shut it- mister- err I-can't-touch-shit."

"Really. That's the best you got? Call me when you think of something better, m'kay, **"** Jack rolled his eyes at her as she stuck her tongue out at the man, he gave her the same gesture back before making his way back to the settee to continue with his movie.

Slowly, she wiped the blood away from her lip checking in the mirror. A minor cut from how she hit her jaw and lip, nothing too bad. Thankfully she had weak painkillers from the hospital for her legs so they would hopefully numb out the pain from her lip too.

After a moment of making sure everything was back to where it originally was, she headed back into the living room spotting her phone as its screen glowed before her ringtone started.

"Got a secret? Can you keep it? Swear this-" she picked up the phone, staring at the screen for a second as she recognized as Hugo's phone number. Well, plus caller ID.

"Hello?" She said, keeping her voice calm and collected despite how she was having a mental breakdown inside, glancing to the window as smoke was still arising from the fallen building down the street.

 _"Great to hear you're alive, kid. Was starting to think you blew up with that building,"_ his deep voice hummed over the phone, her eyes turned to Jack who shrugged his shoulders in response to her look of confusion, a stern gaze as his eyes turned to her phone.

 _'How did he know already? It's been barely... Ten minutes,'_ she thought, frowning as she turned back to the window. Jack was just as confused as she was.

Fair enough. The word of an explosion could easily spread from one part of England to the next in minutes but the location too? A busy business man like him? Knowing it was only down the road from her? It sounded a little too suspicious to Jack.

"I'm fine. Although," she paused, holding up her left hand to herself as she tried to curl her hand into a fist. It stopped halfway though, like it was holding a bottle. It didn't budge, but slowly uncurl. "I think I may have hit my arm a little too hard when I fell earlier. I can't curl my fingers."

 _"Your cybernetic arm?"_

"Yes," she ignored Jack mutter something to himself but paused as she watched him walk into the kitchen clicking his tongue. She stopped, blocking out the A.I. as she continued talking. "Where should I go to get it checked out?" It wasn't like there was a repair shop down the road for robotic parts and she doubted a hospital would be able to help her. Install one, probably. Fix one, probably not.

" _Bring it down to Hype's main office. I'll get someone to look at it while we discuss your... Latest email,"_ she paused hearing his serious tone, looking back to Jack but jumped when she noticed of how close he was to her, practically standing over her. She tried to push him back but paused when it phased through him.

"Don't do that," she hissed at the man, putting her hand over the phone receiver for the moment before pulling herself back into the call. "Sure. Send me the address and I'll be there as soon as I can."

" _Great! I'm emailing you as we speak,"_ she could hear the unmistakable sound of typing in the background, making her own fingers fidget against her hip before glaring to Jack who was staring and listening, muttering under his breath which she could barely make out.

"The new board members gotta be a pain in the ass. Impatient little pricks, **"** Alice gave the taller man a confused glance before absentmindedly nodding her head in reply to Hugo.

She strolled across the short distance from her settee to her laptop, waving the mouse to wake up sleeping beast that was her glorious computer.

"I got it," she hummed, her lips pulling into a thin line as she took notice of where it was. In the middle of freaking London. That meant taking public transport since it certainly wasn't within walking distance of her apartment. "It should take me about half an hour to get there," she mused, turning to the TFL site to check the times for the Underground. Thankfully, it wasn't a peak time so she would hopefully get a seat this time.

After a moment more, Hugo wished her good bye before hanging up before she could reply.

It took Jack a moment to take in what she had said, a small cheer escaping him as he headed for the front door. **"** Finally! We're leaving this dump! **"** Alice rolled her eyes at the hologram, grabbing her coat from her room entering the living room just as the front door opened revealing the two twins. Margret only took one look at her struggling at pulling her jacket and gloves on, dropping the shopping bags at her feet.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" she questioned, walking straight through Jack while mentioning down to her jacket and gloves, watching her tug the gloves on at a painful pace.

"Getting ready to head out," Alice shrugged on the coat finally, trying out the cybernetics which frozen again, refusing to move an inch. She was almost positive she broke it. She barely had it a week at home and she had broken it. She pulled the leather glove over the stiff fingers as she panicked more inside at the idea of the cost to fix it.

"You broke your arm?" the soft-spoken Judith asked from the door, unaware of the hologram standing right beside her tapping his foot impatiently. "How did you do that?"

"I- err-"

"Go on, cupcake. Tell the nice, hot twins what happened with the tub, **"** he smirked across the room at her as she threw him a dirty look while Judith only rose her hands in defence.

"No, not you Judy," the programmer quickly stopped herself, heading over to the dessert chef who pouted.

"Then who?" Margret asked, looking over to the tallest in the room who pinched the nose, sighing. "You've been acting pretty weird these last couple of days. More than usual-"

"Ha! You're telling me! **"** Jack snickered, watching Alice resist snapping at him as the corner of her mouth twitched once, twice, three times.

"-Is there anything you need to tell us?" Judith finished her sister's question, both of them crossing their arms over their chests giving her a solid gaze, raised brows. Oh God, it was the twin attack. "Anything... important?" Jack's form flickered out.

 **"** Don't tell 'em, cupcake! **"** He phased to her side, speaking straining his voice right in her left ear before moving to her right. **"** We wanna get on that doucheface's good side and I'm pretty sure you tellin' Tweedle Dum and Dipshit our little secret will piss him off! **"**

"Alice?" Margret moved closer to her, uncrossing her arms whilst looking her friend in her eyes, darting from each one for some sort of sign.

It took her a moment, but she moved her bangs to the side as they were growing pass her eyebrows before looking her friends straight in the eyes.

"I'm sorry but I can't tell you. It's in the contract I signed. I broke it when I fell over into the tub when the explosion happened," she paused, carefully moving her cybernetics into her pocket as to not have it get in the way. It was as stiff as a branch; she was almost positive it was breaking despite her not moving it at all. Her eyes turned back to the twins, watching them exchange glances. "It's nothing to worry about. Really. I'm fine."

"Do you want us to come with you," the sharp tongue twin asked, pulling her little sister closer as she stepped nearer to Alice.

 **"** No way. **"**

"No. I'm fine. Really," she smiled, stepping back from the clones while grabbing her keys and Oyster card from the zebra bowl near the door. With a small rattle of the keys, she smiled. "I'll be back for dinner- promise. Now, gotta go... bye guys."

With a small nod, Alice quickly escaped the apartment taking a deep breath before heading down the stairs of the block. The brunette stuffed her card and keys into her spare jacket pockets, biting her lip as her mind was a mess.

 _'How am I going to be able to keep this from them? Two years is a long time.'_

 **"** Just keep your trap shut, **"** Jack floated beside her as she only gave him a glance before going down the next set of stairs. **"** Well, I'm gonna catch some shut eye. Call me when we get there, m'kay, **"** with that. Jack disappeared into a mess of pixels, leaving the woman with her thoughts as she headed for the Underground station down the road from her. Peckham Rye. Thankfully it wasn't that far.

* * *

 **February 14** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Tuesday. 11:00.**

When she got to Oxford Circus, the place wasn't packed like she expected. Seeing as it was eleven, Alice thought the place would be cramped shoulder to shoulder with lunch goers but to her surprise, there was very few people- mainly tourists from the looks of the bright shirts and happy smiles on their faces.

She pulled out the slim, Huawei phone she had received from Valance, who she hadn't seen in almost months thanks to him 'accidentally' breaking his hand in a door.

The programmer quickly pulled up her map app and started following the directions to the company. The smell of London here was strong compared to Peckham, no one gave you a second glance although some sights made her smile each time she saw it. In the middle of a street was a small concrete clearing with a statue of a bear in the middle.

What made a smile across her face was the messages people were writing in chalk on the floor all around the statue. She pulled her phone back out, taking a few photos.

' _I love London,'_ she sighed softly, checking her phone after taking her last photo. She was a little early. It wouldn't hurt to stand and marvel at the perfect moment in front of her.

Miss Wonderland _(as her oldest brother called her)_ moved near a wall of a building out of the way, taking a few more photos from that angle where the sun was coming from the side.

"Ahh, you wouldn't believe the dream I just had, **"** Jack yawned, appearing in a flicker of pixels stretching his arms before bringing his hand to his mouth. **"** There was whiskey, and babes and- and- **"** He yawned, cracking his neck along with an eye open, taking in the view around him. **"** Whoa... **"**

"Welcome to central London," Alice murmured and mimicked his yawn, giving the hologram a smile as she watched him survey the area with wider eyes. She couldn't help but admire the look of shock plus a mixture of amazement on his face. She moved to push back a few of her choppy bangs, her own eyes moving to the scene in front of her.

He stopped as he got to the statue area, looking down at the chalk on the ground and followed it to the kids, teens and adults enjoying themselves by writing messages on the ground.

The emotions for the messages were all different. They ranged from simple 'hello Mummy' to the most shocking confessions such as 'I'm pregnant'. A small smile escaped Alice as she raised her hand to her mouth to cover it, watching the young man pick up his girlfriend and spin her around while they both laughed. It was a new sight for her, and she was grateful it was one of the first scenes Jack would see in public.

She glanced to Jack, spotting him watching the couple with his hands by his sides.

 **"** So. This is a world without bandits... huh, **"** he murmured to himself, watching the couple stop spinning and pull into a tight hug. Alice couldn't stop her smile growing into a small grin as the boyfriend kissed her forehead, a delicate smile on her lips as she closed her eyes just enjoying the moment. **"** We're missing out, eh. **"**

Glancing back to Jack, she saw the frown on his lips as he walked back over to her copying her position as he leaned against the wall. It wasn't even a minute later before he spoke.

 **"** Did you plan this or... **"** He trailed his voice off, eyes darting to the girl who shook her head with a smile, watching the toddlers near the middle drawing with their mothers beside them. There was a pause of silence between them, the loud sound of traffic and laughter filling the air as the two watched the scene in front of them. It was surreal for Jack. Something he had wished for on Pandora. A safe place for everyone, for his Angel. Right in front of him. **"** Huh. Didn't think I'd see the day, **"** he chuckled with a shake of his head, smirking in Alice's direction.

"I thought a _hero_ never dies," she muttered loud enough for him to hear, her eyes glued to the family in front of her but gave the man beside her a quick glance.

Jack chuckled humorously at her, a smirk laced across his lips as he glanced back at her, he moved his hands to his hips in his regular hero pose.

 **"** We don't. I don't even know how I died I- the moment I'm back, I'm strangling every employee of mine till one of 'em tells me how the hell it happened, **"** he threatened, mimicking with his hands strangling a random guy beside him who took no notice of his attempts. **"** Stupid... freaking... Godamnnit, I hate this form, **"** he spat out while turning his back against the wall again, glaring into the space in front of him before glancing to Alice. She could only offer him an awkward smile, squeezing her left hand as she felt it tighten into a fist but then froze, locked in place.

' _This thing is totally broken,'_ she sighed to herself, glancing down to her hand in her pocket before pushing herself off of the wall. She stepped past Jack, a frown on her lips as she continued walking. The sound of Jack's voice following her said he was following. It wasn't like he could go anywhere without her. She was his User, and he was her A.I.

It took her five minutes till she got to the location the phone directed her to. She looked around curiously as people walked around her not bothering with the confused looking woman.

Alice frowned as her eyes darted to the buildings above her for a sign or anything. There was nothing to sign or signal for Hype building. A lot of panic started to surface in the brunette's stomach, biting the scab on her lip as she moved back near the closest building.

The programmer questioned how she was lost. They followed the address he gave her to a tee. They were where the address said it was!

"Oh, come on," she swore while looking around at the tall buildings, none of them having some sort of giveaway to what it was. No signs. No open doors. Not even a lousy logo. It wasn't like she knew the Hype logo off by heart but she had the general idea of it. It was a large white H with a yellow and black background. Kinda. She thought.

 **"** Your thing is busted. Not like it was any good anyway, **"** Jack tapped his finger against her phone, unable to physically touch it but give the impression he actually did. Alice pulled her crappy phone away from him, sighing through her nose as she turned her phone ninety degrees to hopefully get it to kick back to its normal condition but when the map turned with her, she knew it was working fine. **"** It's like- five years old, right? Get a new one already. I don't own anything longer than two years- unless it's my favourite shirt. Damn, me and that shirt went through a hella lot together. There was this one time when I- **"**

"My last one broke, remember," she muttered to herself, looking around for anyone who looked remotely capable of helping. The main people who passed them were tourists from their clothes and attitude, they wouldn't be much help. "Phones are expensive anyway..." Alice stuffed hers into her pocket, nervously twirled her hair in her hand but when a tall, suited man of Asian descent turned onto the road she couldn't keep a small sigh from escaping her. Finally. Someone who looked semi-professional and knew where the hell they were.

She pushed the feeling of panic aside as she quickly walked up to him, a small shiver running up her side as she spotted his necklace just peeking out of his collar: a tight purple chain with an odd upside-down V in a small circle. It looked so out of place with his three-piece suit.

"Excuse me- do you happen to know where the Hype's office building is?" she asked, barely getting through her sentence as he walked past her. But he did pause when she got to the end of it, glancing back to her with narrowed brown eyes. She bore back with her blue ones, her mouth twitching as she broke from his gaze to watch Jack walk right up to him and study him- mainly his necklace.

"What business do you have there?" he questioned, pulling his arms to his chest, crossing them as he frowned. Alice frowned herself at the unneeded question, her eyes darted back to his, raising a brow back at him. Her AI only muttered to himself before flickering back over to her.

"This guy's trooouble, **"** he murmured, a stern gaze on the man. She ignored him, thinking he was simply overreacting to the stranger but then again, she didn't trust him as far as she could throw him. **"** Run while you can kid. **"**

"I'm sorry but that's confidential information," she nearly snapped at the man, his frown twitched into a smirk, checking the watch on his wrist before looking back to her. It was then did her mind take in what Jack said, and her stomach sunk as his cold eyes traced over her once more. _'Maybe Jack was right. We should g-'_

He turned back around and started walking, calling back to her. "Hurry up. You're keeping Vasquez waiting," when Hugo's name was spoken, she perked up and quickly followed after the suit despite Jack's protests behind her.

 **"** You know he's probably gonna kill you and throw you in some dumpster behind a sketchy drug ring or somethin', right, **"** he questioned, phasing through her making her pause mid-step before continuing to walk after the man. **"** Do you- just follow- are we seriously going to **chase** after the first guy who mentions a name you know? **"** the hologram followed behind her, trying to divert her course or even get her to think more about her situation like he was. **"** Kid, Kitten oi-oi-OI! Would you just- listen to me for a second! Y-You're ignoring me? That's what you're doing- huh. **"** There was a pause. **"** OH C'mon! Acknowledge me! **"**

In order to stop the man from noticing her absentminded glances back to Jack, she completely blocked him out till he stopped in front of two black window tinted doors, punching a code into a small security box beside it till it pinged and unlocked. He turned to her, pointing to the box by the door as it was surrounded by mirrors which made up the walls around it.

"This is the only known entrance to the public. Passcode is six-four-eight-one-nine. Tell Vasquez to write it down for you," he said before walking through the automatic doors. Alice barely caught it as it started closing, quickly stepping in as the bright lights above were completely blocked out to the outside, catching her by surprise. The neon sign of 'HYPE' above the desk in front of her confirmed her location. She glanced around for the man who helped her, frowning as he was gone and she hadn't even got his name or thanked him.

"Hello. Welcome to Hype. Do you have an appointment?" The friendly young lady asked as Alice stepped over to her desk, a nervous smile across her face was an amusing sight to Jack.

"I...I umm, I'm looking for Hugo Vasquez, since," she pulled her cybernetics out sheepishly, her receptionist stared at it before back to her with shock apparently in her brown eyes. "I broke my arm. Kinda, the wires or something. I don't know how this works so I'm not sure what's wrong with it," she admitted, trying to unlock her fists which seemed fruitless as it didn't budge. The receptionist nodded her head, pulling a couple of her brunette bangs back as she started to type on her computer.

 **"** It's totally busted, kiddo, **"** Jack chimed into the conversation, too busy studying the reception around them but did give the girls a glance of acknowledgment. Alice simply ignored the A.I. further, something Jack found irritating but chose not to snap back and make himself look immature as he knew she was keeping track of everything that annoyed him. Alice was simply keeping track to save herself the future headache from the taboo subjects. **"** It's made of scrap metal. Probably from a shitty claptrap or cleaner bot or somethin'. **"**

In her mind, it was totally busted. Jack agreed but he was much more vocal about how shitty it was. Mainly because he had approved of the model when it was first made, something he looked back on now as he realized how shitty the components for it were. It was made cheap, which was a plus but he didn't notice how bad it was till he saw it in use now.

"Oh, Miss Jones, right," she nodded her head, pulling her arm back down to her side as she felt a small twitch in the connectors, noting the receptionist nametag finally. "Mister Vasquez will be down in ten minutes," Sue, the lady behind the desk smiled with a mention to the chairs to the right.

With a small nod, Alice took a seat anxiously; Jack's comments were not helping her nerves as he was surely still annoyed she was ignoring him.

She moved her hands to her pockets, pulling out her phone and headphones. she plugged them into the device scrolling through her playlist for a song to listen to. Ah. Lorde. Made in the early two-thousand... twenty-thirteen to be precise. It was an old song of her generation but it wasn't as popular as you'd think. But when she first heard it, it sent shivers down her spine.

"Welcome to your life. There's no turning back," her eyes stopped on the mirror windows beside her, people watching as she found it amusing how everyone would look at the mirrors and adjust themselves, unaware it was actually a one-way mirror and everyone inside could see them. "Even while we sleep. We will find you."

 **"** Your music is so damn depressing, **"** Jack snapped at her, his eyes narrowing when she turned her gaze away from him and the window, back over the to the receptionist's desk. This would have boiled his blood if he had any. He moved to relax backwards, letting himself hang like he was lying in a lounge chair. He floated by her gracefully, stopping by her side.

"Don't you have something more rock and roll, upbeat? You're killin' me, **"** maybe it had become a habit to ignore Jack when he complained about something of hers, but it was like second nature to her now after almost two months of him intruding in her life.

The doors meters in front of her opened, revealing the suited man she had been waiting for.

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter four of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 _ **This chapter's question is: If you could play as any Borderlands character- any- which would it be?**_

 _ **Answer: I would totally play as Tannis. Why? Her social response with everyone and everything would be so funny to listen to- as well as I can see her skill action be something involving her inventions so... yeah.**_


	5. Recovery

Chapter 5

* * *

 **February 14** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Tuesday. 11:35.**

Alice slipped her headphones off quickly and stood up for the man, taking notice of Jack as he phased out and over to her with arms crossed over his chest in a defensive position. Hugo walked towards them with open arms.

"There's my favourite girl. How's the arm feeling? Not causing you too much trouble I hope," Hugo smiled as his eyes darted from the limp arm at her side before back to her eyes. Alice's narrowed with a raised brow, Jack copying her expression as maybe it was just Hugo's personality or he was purposely trying to annoy the practically PMS-ing girl before him.

"Look. _Sir_ ," her lips twirled up into a petite smile of clearly not joy, grabbing her robotic wrist with her flesh one and holding it up to her eye level as it didn't move an inch but better yet, it sparked. It physically manifested a spark of electric around her palm. "It's broken. It got whacked into the side of my bath and now it's ruined. So please explain to me how this _thing_ was expected to last me two years when it couldn't withstand a shitty smack on the forearm from me tripping in my bathroom."

 **"** That's the spirit, kitten! Rip this Jackass a new one! **"** Jack cheered at her clearly pissed tone, something he hadn't seen her use since the first day he had met her literally hours after she had first woken up. The hologram grinned, his eyes turned back to the no longer cocky man as his lips turned down and his eyes widened at her snap.

"I- uhh, I didn't choose the models myself since I- I don't have much speciality in cybernetics since I just-"

 **"** This is fun. Haven't seen anyone panic like that in for-e-ver, **"** Jack hummed from her side, clearly enjoying Hugo's panic at her anger and powerful tone; something she had picked up in college when she was in group projects and she had no intention of picking up the slack of others in her gang. **"** Tell 'em to find the H.J.T-forty model. It ain't that old and I'm sure even this moron knows what it is, **"** Alice's icy blue eyes stayed on Hugo as he regained his stature.

Standing up taller, she waited till Hugo's eyes connected with hers before repeating what Jack had said.

"H.J.T-forty model. He- Jack said to use that model," what she said came out more nervous than confident as repeating what Jack had said to her... it was an old feeling knowing he was right beside her, practically looming over her smaller build and the fact he was becoming more accustom to her was unnerving seeing as he was still technically male. And truthfully, she was becoming used to his fanatics as well.

"Right... give me one minute," he mused, walking back the same way he came. Sitting back down, Alice glanced to Jack. He stared at the closing door a moment longer as faint yelling could be heard. When the sounds slowly dulled, his eyes turned back to her with a crinkle as he smirked.

 **"** He shits his pants whenever I'm mentioned. _Classic_. God, I miss those reactions, **"** Jack hummed while floating beside her, making her involuntarily shudder when his arm phased through her temple as it left a spark of static and an electric jolt. She had noticed the more often he did that over time, the stronger the shudder became as well as the spark.

"Enough with the sparks," she murmured and waved her hand where he was like swatting a fly, rubbing her port subconsciously as she turned back to the door impatiently. Jack snorted at her reaction, spotting how the corner of her ears would redden whenever the sparks hit her ears when he spoke or whispered in them.

 **"** You know you like it. **"**

 _"I most certainly do not,"_ she thought with a glare towards the door now, ignoring the hologram getting uncomfortably close to her right now. The static flying across her shoulder, neck and ears said enough for her not to look. He chuckled at her reaction, scanning her body as he took notice of her heart beat racing for a moment before calming itself. _"Jackass."_

 **"** You totally love it kitten. You'll admi- **"**

"I will not," she snapped back over her shoulder, quickly whipping back around as the door opened to Hugo standing in the doorway. With a simple hand gesture, she stood up and followed him further into the building.

Up two floors to a small, white room filled with different sorts of tech along the walls. Most she didn't knew but by the shapes of them, she could at least guess their uses. Jack seemed to recognise this and that, talking to himself as Hugo lead her to an even smaller, whiter room with a man in a white lab coat waiting. She couldn't help but stare at the man who was standing beside a cybernetic arm about her side, although this model was painted gold. Something she was not at all keen on as it was so bright in colour compared to her. Hers was a darker yellow.

"Nice colour. Looks a hell lot better than your piece of shit, **"** was Jack only comment when she took a seat on the white cot, watching the unnamed man walk over and roll up her sleeve up to her elbow. After moving her cybernetics in all angles and positions, he moved to his clipboard jolting down the results before grabbing his screwdriver. Alice wasn't nervous about the screwdriver. Or Jack watching her doctor- scientist person assessing her forearm and elbow.

What made her nervous was how Hugo was watching this all happen while leaning against the wall near the door.

It made her wonder what he was waiting for.

"It looks like the impact broke a few of the main receivers," he spoke as it fidgeted around in her forearm, grabbing the pliers from beside him to disconnect her cybernetics from the implant just above her elbow.

"So... It's fixable?" Hugo questioned. He watched the man remove the arm from her, putting it to the side before grabbing the newer, gold model. Alice's eyes trailed around the nearly bare room, finding limited medicine supplies in it which shocked her seeing as Hype was one of the leading powers when it came to medical technologies.

"Not without taking it apart piece by piece. It would take some time which means money, it would be cheaper to scrap it," the smile on the suit faded as he knew the arm was connected to her, a loud grunt escaping her when she felt her fingers again. It was a horrible feeling to her, losing the feeling of her fingers then having it come back minutes later. "My apologizes. Your nerves must have been shocked just now."

"It felt weird," she commented, hesitantly flexing her fingers as the metal seemed the same as before. It had the same weight as her other arm but it felt- stronger almost. She liked it. "But I'm getting used to it," seeing as she had to disconnect the arm every night, not being able to sleep with it on. In her opinion it was uncomfortable, even though she was technically allowed to.

Once the man was finished, finding out his name was 'Doctor Albert' who is not actually a medical doctor, she turned to Hugo putting on hand on her hip feeling the metal chill against the covered skin. It was absolutely freezing and it was in the middle of freaking February. Vasquez copied her body movement in turn, Jack instantly phasing to her side after having been so quiet during the entire process.

She actually had to check if he was still there and not sleeping in the back of her head somewhere. From what she had gathered from Jack being around the male species, he wasn't entirely keen on being around them. Maybe it was just a mammal thing, wanting to be the top dog at all times. Well, that's what she thought.

"Now, don't go breaking this one now," Hugo said with a slight chuckle, trying to break the ice with the woman who was beyond small talk at the moment in time. She personally wanted to go home, eat whatever dinner Margret had cooked for everyone... then devour a year's worth of chocolate and watch a sappy romance movie. Jack was going to complain, she knew but she felt tense and ill despite technically being on vacation.

Alice raised a brow at his words, watching the man shift under her eyes like most people did when someone didn't respond or even reply to his words. "I'll just- see you out."

Bidding Doctor Albert a small thanks and goodbye, she followed the suit back to reception where he turned to her once they got to the door. The fake smile of his was apparent, sending chills up her spine as she did wonder why he was so... well- he wasn't near as pushy as he was before. Maybe it was an order by a higher-up? Maybe it was the thought of her having Jack in her head, listening to everything he said and did.

"Thanks for... well, all of this," Alice rubbed her arm slowly as she felt awkward just leaving after they fixed her- well, replaced her arm for free.

Well, she thought it was free.

He smiled when she said this, an actual smile and not a fake 'I'm a nice person' one. It crossed her mind, she recalled a certain man from before, looking up to the suit in front of her. "That reminds me. A man showed me the entrance and told me the code. Who was he? Middle aged, Asian, nearly six foot- wore a black suit with a purple chained necklace."

Hugo's eyes paused when she described the man, the last detail catching his eye. He raised his hand to his face.

"You must be talking about Simon. He's actually in the same program as you are actually," he stroked his beard as he recalled the man, fishing his mind for any details he could release to her without giving her anything of too importance to spill. "We hold a monthly gala for your program. I was going to email you next week but I might as well tell you now," she raised a brow at his words, tilting her head slightly.

 **"** A Gala of Users? And talk about what? **"** Jack questioned, rolling his eyes while turning his back on Hugo. **"** Like _'look at me! I'm crazy and I have a voice in my head!' 'OHMYGAWD you too?!_ ', **"** ignoring Jack acting like a fool beside her, she focused on Hugo. Even if she did want to laugh at his high-pitched mocking voice.

"When is it?" She questioned, pushing her hands into her jacket pockets as Hugo pulled out his phone, swiping it twice.

"Every first of the month. Starts here at seven pm and finishes at ten," he explained while swiping his screen again, typing now. Her phone chimed catching her attention before he continued speaking. "Which reminds me. You mentioned getting a roommate in your email," Alice nodded meekly, subconsciously glancing to Jack who had tuned back into the conversation now. "And before you say anything. We already got you covered. Gotta a guy picked out for you- he has the same... well, disability that you do. So, he'll be able to help you adjust to it in your day-to-day life," he spoke confidently.

She paused, frowning at this new information. Great. She didn't have a choice in the matter.

"Do I get to meet him before he moves in then?" She questioned, watching Hugo cough into his fist, smiling while moving his hand to her shoulder, leading her outside to where the sun was setting, giving the mirrors an orange reflection which hit her right in the face. Hugo barely flinched.

"No. He's currently not in the country- but he should be here within the next two weeks. I'll be emailing you everything tomorrow, be safe getting home," he practically pushed her out while putting a small metal hoop in her hand. "Use this whenever you plug into somethin' or whatever you do. You can stop using it... well. Not till the board trusts your report and your... opinion. Kay," with a wink, the automatic doors closed behind him while she stood there for a moment in shock.

She seriously just got kicked out.

Was she just meant to go home now? Wait- no. She needed chocolate and a lot of ice cream.

 **"** Well. That was fun, **"** sung Jack as he floated beside her, sending a spark up her side when he purposely kicked his feet through her stomach. She groaned at the sensation, gritting her teeth as she started walking again in the direction of the tube station while stuffing the small, blue hoop into her pocket to look at later. **"** Hey- hey don't ignore me! **"**

 _"I'm not,"_ she thought in reply to him, tugging her sleeve down properly past her hand before tugging her coat on. She was happy she had her wallet with her, she planned on popping into Superdrug on the way home to grab some chocolate.

It took ten minutes to get to the station, heading down the stairs to the underground quickly catching a train in the direction of Peckham Rye. A sigh escaped her seeing seats despite it being peak times. The small brunette took a seat near the end, pausing before standing up when an elderly man stepped on.

He smiled as she mentioned him to take it, moving to stand near the doors as her arm slipped around her stomach when her gut squeezed uneasily. Jack caught onto her pained expression, watching her pull her collar up further to hide her mouth.

 **"** What happened now? Sat on glass or somethin'? **"** He questioned her, his eyes running down her body leaving a slight blush on her cheeks as he flickered right in front of her.

Sky eyes darted away from his mismatched ones. Unsure why, she didn't question it. Having Jack around her for months made her acutely aware of his staring, his comments, his moods. She knew his staring wasn't teasing or lustful, it was concern. Something she wasn't too used to getting from him. Maybe that's why it made her uneasy.

 _"No... I'm fine."_ Another wave of pain passed her, thanking the Gods when the train came to her stop. She hurried off heading straight for Superdrug only around the corner from the station.

The small brunette grabbed a small basket while wiping a small bead of sweat from her forehead, feeling a little lightheaded as she finally realized why she had been feeling so weak. So moody. So damn annoyed today. The stress had caught up on her after the terror attack and started her period early. It hurt. She hadn't even bought her supplies for the month.

When Jack finally realized what she was buying along with chocolate and ice cream, he cringed and shook his head, instantly walking away from her instead of by her side.

 **"** Ughh. That's why you've been more of a bitch today, **"** he murmured while walking on the isles above her, not staying in one place too long before phasing to another part of the store. **"** Ha. Gonna be fun watchin' you tomorrow. Poor bastards have no idea what's comin'. **"**

Oh. Right. She had work tomorrow too. It had finally dawned on her that she was going to be going to work on the second day of her time of the month. The worst part in her opinion. It wasn't like she snapped at anyone or anything. It was more like, she just wanted to be alone and curl up on the settee with a good movie... plus chocolate and ice cream.

…

Well. That sucked. She couldn't do both. She was going to be stuck in a small, tiny office with her boss... great.

She quickly popped into a nearby Starbucks to use their bathroom before grabbing a decaf latte for the walk home.

She rubbed her eyes tiredly, paying then leaving taking a bite of her chocolate as she walked. Today was a shit day for Alice. Broken arm. A bombing was just down her street- no doubt there would be a ton of flowers there tomorrow for the dead. And she found out Hype had already found a roommate for her only an hour since she sent the email. It freaked her out how fast they worked.

With a sigh, she threw the remains of her sweet wrapper and empty cup into a recycling bin by her.

Remembering the text, she brought out her phone, checking the message Hugo had emailed her.

 _[Passcode: 64819]_

She paused studying the message, nodding as it passed through her mind what it was. The passcode for the door. Of course.

"Today sucked," she muttered mainly to herself, rubbing her neck sheepishly with her cold cybernetic while Jack walked beside her like a normal person, humming in agreement.

 **"** Ha - join the club. **"**

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter five of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 _ **This chapter's question is: If you could have any career in the Borderlands world, what would it be?**_

 _ **Answer: I would freaking love to be either Marcus or Dr Zed's Assistant. Why? Cause they're awesome! Hell, I wouldn't mind being Jack's assistant but can you imagine the shit he would put me through? *Hint Hint***_


	6. Brother dearest

**Chapter 6**

* * *

 **February 15** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Wednesday. 09:47** **.**

Alice seriously didn't know anyone who liked getting up in the morning- yet alone liking work at all- well, apart from Jack apparently. He had woken her up an entire half an hour before her Hello Kitty alarm clock went off. The former CEO was actually excited to see her workplace, eighty percent of that reasoning being he was bored of staying at her place but the other twenty percent was just curiosity about what she did for a living, as well as how developed their coding and computers were. From what he saw from the technology around him, he was disappointed. Holograms were made from even before he was born as well as robots. These people were just in the middle of human robots, miles behind making anything that could construct things like the constructors in his world.

With the trouble Alice had getting her arm on this morning, she was almost grateful Jack woke her up early- although him rushing her in the shower was completely unneeded in her opinion. The lustful comments she could ignore, but the bitching about her taking too long was a song that pissed her off, reminding her of her brothers who still hadn't contacted her yet. She could only assume they were out in the field, out of contact.

Tugging at the long sleeve turtleneck she supported, her steps to the office quickly sped up till she strolled into her room, glancing up to what she thought was the battered alarm clock above the door, but it had been replaced with a sleek, red one. It made her wonder who was the victim of the last one.

"Good morning," she greeted her boss as he sat slumped over his desk in thought, herself only absentmindedly glancing to Jack as the hologram walked past her, analysing the room carefully with his hands on his hips the entire time.

Mr Milo, her boss, sat up straight when she spoke, peering over his screen with a frown which vanished into a small smile. It was a pleasant change compared to the irritated grunt she would normally receive from the man.

"Hey. Good morning," he paused in his sentence, glancing over her body before pausing on her lips as the two-inch scar stood on the left corner. "How are you feeling? Ready to get back to the norm?" he asked, standing up from his chair as she walked over to her desk directly diagonal to where he sat. Alice placed her bag down beside her desk, tugging her sleeves down nervously.

"I guess. I'm still getting used to things now," she said, sitting down and booting up the beast below her. She smiled at the familiar hum it offered her, her bright blue happy fish screensaver greeted her return. "Also, if I'm a little slow at typing I'm sorry," she dipped her head to the man, feeling her cheeks redden lightly while heading to her emails for today's tasks. From what she could see, it was mainly tasks that had been put to the side for her return. And it would take her weeks to catch up to the present tasks...

"I see," Milo's rough voice dropped at her words, peering over her monitor to her as he was curious about one thing. "How are the- err... Cybernetics?" he asked, glancing to her left arm as her eyes glanced to Jack nervously as he has taken the normally empty seat beside her. The word cybernetics brought his attention back to the conversation, catching her eye.

"It's fine... A little hard to use as it doesn't feel anything. Making things... Difficult," she explained, starting on the first task of the day which was to fix a bunch of code from another company which worked hand-in-hand with theirs. It was a simple fix, but they were probably too lazy to do it themselves, apparently waiting two months for it was worth the laziness.

"That's cool, that's cool," her boss nodded in understanding, glancing from his own work before back to her. "What does it look like anyway? I'm curious," a small childish grin spread across his face, Alice paused in her typing to stare at him when he leaned above his monitor. "Can I see it?"

She wanted to say no. More than anything she wanted to wear gloves to cover it but she knew it would look childish. It looked horrible to her. Absolutely hated the sight of it but it wasn't like she would survive in the programming profession with one hand. It was necessary. To say the least.

"Maybe later, sir. I just really want to put a decent dent in this list before I leave," her eyes darted back to her screen, pretending to concentrate as Mr Milo nodded his head, pulling his head back. When the sound of his typing filled the room, she released a breath of relief.

"God this place is so depressing. No bar, no windows, barely any room to stretch- no wonder your boyfriend killed himself. Probably couldn't wait to off it outta here, **"** Jack complained while looking around cramped office, earning a harsh glare from Alice who heard him. Seeing it, he stuck his tongue out. **"** Oh, come on! This room is practically screwing you into depression. **"**

She ignored him for the meantime, sorting out the code which took about half an hour before she started on the next along with grabbing a cup of coffee in her favourite blue fishy mug. Five, large coffees and ten hours, she had put a reasonable dent in her work and Jack had left after the first hour to 'sleep' as he put it. At first, she didn't mind, now she actually missed his annoying voice. Maybe it was because she was with him twenty-four seven but he actually made her feel comfortable.

 _'Maybe this was why the program was made,'_ she thought, glancing to the clock above her head as it was already ten past eight. It was way past time for the normal people, but she had so many tasks left that she knew she'd be leaving at nine at least.

She tapped her foot before making another coffee for herself and her boss, removing her jacket finally and stretching in her seat. Alice was tired, barely getting four hours of sleep last night out of panic for her work and how everyone would react around her. Her boss seeing her arm was not on her list of 'give-a-shit' after being stuck in the same room with him for nearly ten hours now.

Of course, she was thankful Jack stayed up with her to keep her company, telling her random stories of his life before like his office parties. She didn't mind what he told her, it was truthfully fun watching him get so excited and sentimental over stories of his past. That, and she fell asleep during one of his stories about when he first met his body double. Timothy, she thought his real name was. She couldn't remember. When he started the story, she was already drifting off into her pillow, holding it like it was her teddy bear. Jack sure loved to talk about himself. That was for sure.

"Looks like you've put quite a dent in your list," her boss spoke across the room to her, making the brunette freeze before lowering her arms. "Staying in hospital must have drove you insane."

"What makes you say that," she questioned, taking a sip of her somewhat hot coffee before glancing to the list she had in the corner of her screen. Over the past couple of hours, Alice had been pushing herself to finish each task as quickly as possible with little mistakes. Although, she was giving herself the biggest headache. Knowing Jack was going to complain soon about it, she reached into her bag to get out some painkillers.

"Well. I never pegged you as someone who gets ill," Milo started while pushing away from his computer, heading over to the abused coffee machine in the corner. Although what her boss said was true, she couldn't help but watch him walk while popping two pills.

The last time she could recall going to hospital and staying more than a day was when she broke her arm when she was eight. But, that was because of a stupid man and his stupid car.

Thinking back, she could recall at least three times she had been hit by a car. After all, where she grew up absolutely no one could drive without hitting someone at least once. "Plus, you always come in with paintball bruises so you must have a high pain tolerance or something."

"Oh. Yeah," Alice didn't actually expect her boss to remember the sorts of bruises she had- especially the paintball inflicted ones. Was it silly to say she adored the rush of being shot at, shooting people and just- the thrill of combat. Sometimes she would question herself about why she didn't go into the field like the rest of her family. "I try to avoid getting hurt as much as possible."

She only had to remind herself her of father. And, well, most of her family. They had all died in the field and she had no intention of becoming another dead body in the ground. After what happened yesterday just down the street, she was wondering just which place was safer.

Her boss took his seat back at his desk just as Jack phased himself back into existence, letting out the biggest yawn he could make.

 **"** Ahh man, haven't slept that well in years, **"** he cracked his neck somehow, making Alice cringe and pull her hands away from her keyboard to grip her side. Maybe it was because he was right behind her but it was abnormally loud in her ear.

The hologram paused, looking around the office before stopping at her. He was confused, he had timed how long he could sleep for before she would be finishing so... why was she still working?

 **"** You can't seriously still be workin' cupcake, **"** he growled while phasing through her to sit right in front of her on top of her keyboard, Alice unintendedly pushed back to wheel her chair away from him. **"** Look, babe, you look like shit and at this rate, you're gonna pass out and I'm gonna be stuck with this dickfaced moron, **"** he commented, glancing over to her boss who couldn't help but glance over to her in confusion. Jack phased out, quickly reappearing beside her.

"Err- you alright?" Milo asked from across the desks, raising a brow at her blank expression quickly catching sight of the break of sweat across her temple. "It's pretty late. You can head home and get an early night," the young woman shook her head while rubbing her eyes, blinking and readjusting her vision before looking back to her boss.

"I'm fine," she said, glancing to Jack with a stern gaze. "Really. I'm good. Just a little headache," she rubbed her forehead before she paused to stare at her screen, her eyes traveling back to her boss who held a blank expression. _'Did he...'_ She frowned, trying to refresh her tab but it simply said she had no internet connection. A small sigh passed her lips, looking back to Milo. "Sir, I'm fine."

"Well. Tough. The bosses are cracking down on people going home before ten, after what happened with..." His voice trailed off as he glanced to the empty seat opposite him, her heart twisting when she knew he was referring to Daniel. "So, yeah. Go home. I'm going to start packing up myself," finding very little energy to fight him on the subject, she obeyed. Once she had transferred the information, shut her computer down and gathered her stuff, she headed out with a soft goodbye.

Since it was so late, there was very little people on the Underground which meant she was able to snag herself a seat without the worry of having to give it up to any disabled, pregnant or elderly people. The half an hour trip from work to home was quiet, having to restrain herself from falling asleep but the snarky comments from Jack was enough to keep her awake and aware of her surroundings. London wasn't a dangerous place per say, but it sure as hell wasn't the safest. It was a mixture of both. Safe _(normally)_ in the daylight, but wouldn't want to be within a mile radius at night.

The dull lights of the streetlamps illuminated her walkway, fiddling with her worse for wear phone till it chimed, getting a text although the sender made her raise a brow.

 _[Get. Home. Now. That's an order.]_

Her steps came to a full halt, her eyes trained on the text as the information ran through her head. Daryl. Who else could it be? Peter wouldn't give her any warning. He woulda waited for her and surprised her but Daryl would text her and make her hurry up. He wasn't one for waiting.

The ball of excitement started to spin in her stomach, smiling to herself as she stuffed her phone back into her pocket and burst out into a full run down the blocks to her apartment. All the enthusiasm left her the moment she got to her door, pausing with her key in the door as she recalled how long she hadn't seen him in. Nearly six months. Despite texting him- something he never said to do unless it was an emergency, it took him two entire months just to respond to her and he had the nerve to _order her_ home? To her own home. Something he didn't even own since he and the rest of her family spent their entire lives in the field.

Now she remembered why she didn't want to join the army. It was no life worth living if you forgot everything you cared about to serve your country.

The blood boiled in her veins, unlocked the door and slammed it closed behind her. Jack jolted awake in her mind, not materialising himself yet as he could sense another person in the apartment. He would lie if he said he wasn't interested in finding out who but watching from the side would have to do for now.

The noise echoed throughout the small apartment. The man seated on her loveseats stood up, standing tall as she tossed her keys into the bowl near her door before walking into the living room barely acknowledging his presence. "Hey, Alice."

When he didn't get a response, he sighed, coughing lightly.

"Al, would you at least look at me?"

"No," she snapped, grabbing a can of Stella from her fridge, popping the top and taking a sip of beer. Heading back into the living room area, Daryl mentioned for her to take a seat as he did. She followed, taking another sip. She shifted herself to face him, but refused to look at him. "So. What's your excuse?"

He blinked, frowning.

"Excuse? I've been out of contact for the last three months- I just got your text last week," Daryl defended himself, sitting up straighter in his seat as a small scowl spread across his lips.

"And you didn't text me back when you got it?" she questioned, resisting the growing urge to crush the can in her hand, but took a large gulp of it instead when he bit the corner of his lip. She moved the it to her left hand. "I was in that hospital for over a month- I lost a part of my arm, Daniel was killed and neither of my brothers had the God forsaken nerve to drop me a line?" she stood up, tossing the can onto the coffee table. He followed her lead.

"Look- I'm sorry I didn't reply as soon as I should have but you have to gimme a break- I was being shot at half the time!" he growled out as she headed back to the kitchen, coming back with two beers shoving the second into his hand before moving to sit on the arm of the loveseats. "I'm sorry. I'm really-really-really-reeaaaaally sorry- I was always sure I'd be the first in the family to lose a limb... It suits you," a small dry chuckle escaped the two, both of them cracking open their drinks and taking a sip.

A short silence hung between the two, Alice breaking the silence with a sigh. Jack almost broke it himself. It was just getting good.

"Where is Peter anyway?" Daryl stared for a moment at her question, shrugging his shoulders as he plopped back down.

"Fuck knows. The shit never tells me anything. Secret this and secret that- fuck him," he grunted with a kick of his feet, resting them on the coffee table as her eyes stayed trained on the building just outside the windows. "Have you told Mum about what happened?" he asked after a moment, watching her roll her eyes in his direction which made him roll them back before coughing again.

"No. Why tell her anything? I haven't seen her since I was sixteen-"

"She's our moth-"

"She did not raise me," Alice snapped back, downing the rest of her drink, leaving the can on the table besides its partner before heading in the direction of her room. "Enough. I'm going to bed. You know where the blankets are."

Before Daryl could mutter another word, she slammed the door closed behind her. There was a short pause before she leaned back against it, letting out a grunt as she could finally feel the effect of the alcohol. It was calming, the feeling of tipsy was well welcomed. She hadn't had this feeling in months, but the new pain medication allowed the consumption of beer and all that wonderful stuff.

Letting her body hit the bed, she instantly curled up tight into a ball as it was around the time she needed to take another bunch of painkillers. Something that meant going back out into the living room to get. Something she wasn't going to do anytime soon.

Sometimes she could just curse herself for being stubborn. But being emotional and hurt, she allowed it. Considering her mother already knew what was going on right now. She was her emergency number in the hospital, as well as Daryl had to ask for leave from _her_. She knew. Yet she hadn't contacted her- just what kind of a mother did that?

 **"** Soooo pumpkin what'd I miss? **"** The former CEO popped back into her version, sitting up once more as he had reminded her to remove her contacts. When she returned, she changed out of her jeans and into a baggy white shirt before she resumed her position by flopping back onto her bed. **"** Hey. Honeypie. What's happening? **"** Jack didn't seem that fazed by her silence, considering it normal but still phased down beside her on the bed, making himself comfortable although she couldn't see now. **"** Puuuuuuuumpki- **"**

"I geeeeet it," she sighed, shifting herself to face the voice while grabbing the only plush she had on her bed; the thing Jack hated most in her room. It was an Enderman plush Daniel had won her at an arcade at a theme park called Thorpe Park. It was one of her favourites places, and the poor dude had spent over twenty pounds on the stupid toy. Apparently, it was a man's secret rule to buy his girlfriend at least one thing on a date. Seeing as they split on the tickets and food, her favourite monster plush would do.

"You didn't miss much although I know you saw everything. You see everything," she said, pulling the toy's large head under her chin with a sigh. "My idiotic big brother made an appearance... well, one of them did."

 **"** Ahh one of the military bros, **"** Jack nodded while moving his palm under his chin, his arm supporting his head as he watched the young woman shift till her arms were firmly around the long plush, it stretched from her chin down to her hips in length. **"** Good to see he ain't dead, right? Right? **"**

"His stubbornness would kill him first before a bullet does," she muttered, pulling her knees closer to herself while closing her eyes just listening to the hologram's subtle sounds. The light static he would make was like white noise to her now. "So... you two have something in common."

 **"** Pfft. Ha! Heroes don't die babe, **"** he reminded her, moving to lie on his back with his ankles crossed. **"** So. How long is the shidiot staying here? **"**

"Probably a week. I doubt Mum would let him stay off too long," Alice murmured, reopening her eyes and trying to focus on the space in front of her where Jack's voice was coming from. He noticed this, turning his head slightly to her.

 **"** What? **"**

"Nothing. It's just- with you here, I don't feel so... alone," she spoke truthfully, closing her eyes again as she sighed into the Enderman's fluffy head. A smile leaked from her, reaching up to absentmindedly pet the plush's head before tracing around it's stitched white eyes. "So... I'm grateful. Thanks," She glanced down to the toy, seeing it stare up at her blankly. Jack watched this, frowning and shaking his head before he turned back to staring at the ceiling.

 **"** You're er- welcome. I guess, **"** he sounded hesitant for a moment, his mixed eyes analysing the cracks in the ceiling before glancing back to the girl beside him to see she was already drifting off now. That brought a smile to his lips, seeing someone so comfortable around him to sleep. He recalled when she first came back to her home. She wouldn't sleep, she'd try to hide her crying from him as she sorted out her dead partner's belongings for his family day-and-night. "That was weird."

Jack moved his arms under his head, sighing as he could recall all the stupid stories he told her of his past, anything to stop her from thinking and make her sleep. From his silly company parties to even his programming days- oh how much he hated those Clap Trap Units. At night, her crying was annoying so making her sleep put an end to it. After the first couple of weeks of watching her cry at the mere sight of a photo of her partner, he would recall the grieving he went through when his first wife died. It brought back memories, something he didn't want to be reminded off after so many years of keeping it all under wraps.

The door to her bedroom creaked open, the former Hyperion sat up and watched with narrowed eyes as Daryl stepped in.

"Al, you awake?" He questioned quietly, walking over to the sleeping girl and peering over her to check. When she gave no visible response, he sighed, scratching his neck awkwardly while grabbing her computer chair and wheeling it over to her bedside.

Once he was close enough, he sat down and rubbed his face. Looking down upon his sister, he bit his lip.

"I'm sorry. For... everything you went through alone. I know, I'm a shitty brother who shouldn't even be asking for forgiveness but," he paused, coughing lightly before rubbing his chest. "I've been in and out of hospital lately myself. A lot of tests but... I'll be fine," he coughed again, looking down to her curled-up form.

The hologram watched him speak. Jack sat up and crossed his legs comfortably as he finally got to see her brother with his own two eyes. They looked alike, that was for sure. Same cheekbones and they both had long, thick eyelashes. Speaking of eyes, his were an icy blue with flares of grey while hers had specks of gold in them. Jack could only guess that central heterochromia ran in their family. Well, the short gene didn't apparently. He was taller than the blue former CEO, hitting six foot one while Jack barely grazed six foot. Daryl was also very thick with muscle, something you would expect from training in the army for last seven years of his life.

Her brother smiled slightly glancing down to her smaller, skinner form. "Just... look after yourself first. I'll tell you everything when you're back on your feet," he stood up and draped the blankets from the bottom of her bed over her.

He smiled at how she shifted into the covers, a small whine escaping her. He pushed the chair back over to her computer, giving his sister one last look from across the bed.

"Get better, idiot," he closed the door behind him silently, leaving the A.I. to flop back onto the bed he couldn't even touch.

His eyes travelled back to the girl by his side, a dry laugh escaping his lips.

 **"** Stupidity must run in the family, eh, **"** he smirked, flickering out to rest in the back of her brain. Neither sibling would admit their true feelings. They were both idiots in Jack's eyes. At least he could bluntly say his mind without thinking about the other's reaction. After all, his way of thinking was _'fuck their opinion. Mine is better'_.

* * *

 **February 28** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Tuesday. 12:02.**

Shopping for clothes was silly in Alice's opinion. Shopping for clothes for some gala to be judged and belittled seemed even more stupid. But in Jack's opinion, this party was huge and she _had_ to look good. Apparently, if she was his user, she had to look good for _him_. Seeing as the first person they met was her, not him.

"I hate dresses," she cursed quietly to herself while looking through the endless dresses on the racks in front of her. Truthfully, M&S was the only store she'd go to willingly for clothes. Sure, it was kinda expensive but the stuff lasted for a pretty long time. Then again, she had limited money so the choices in front of her were a fifty-fifty chance of either breaking or saving her wallet. Either way, Jack had an opinion about everything.

 **"** Nahh. **"**

 **"** Ehh. **"**

 **"** God...dammit... that looks like a bandit's skin pizza. **"**

 **"** What. The actual hell. Is that? **"**

 **"** Pfft. Yeah. In your dreams cupcake. **"**

She finally understood why girls didn't go shopping with their boyfriends. Either they weren't interested, or too overly interested. Alice was already regretting asking for his opinion. It was like hers didn't matter now.

 _'Could you please pick something already? I feel so stupid picking things up then putting them down for the last twenty minutes,'_ she thought to him, watching the hologram circle around her to another line of clothes. Walking along it, he continued muttering to himself till a sweetheart, yellow dress caught his eye. Jack spun on his heels to face her, putting his glitching hand on top of the shoulder of it.

"Told you I'd find you somethin', **"** he grinned, watching her pull the silky fabric from its rack and to her body before pulling up the price tag. She raised a brow, looking to him.

' _This is forty pounds over the limit I gave you,'_ no dress was worth over fifty pounds in her opinion, but gave him the price range of forty to be nice. This dress had to be one of the most expensive in the store, costing eighty-one ninety-nine.

"You're welcome, **"** he continued on, walking on the direction of the changing rooms letting the young woman follow as she surveyed the dress. It had a leather white belt under her cleavage, it flowed down and out to give the impression of wider hips with a skinner waist. She would admit, it was a very pretty dress. Complete with a generously bedazzled collar and hem.

She really liked it. Though she wondered if such a dress was worth the cost.

"Trust me cupcake. You'll look so sexy; the men will drool with massive hard-ons **."** She tugged the dress under her armp, frowning.

"Please don't say that," she muttered to herself as she felt her cheeks set a blaze at his words, grabbing a numbered plastic slip from the desk near the changing rooms before entering her designated room. Once inside and locked, she started stripping down glancing down to the yellow jewelled dress.

Jack phased in front of her, one hand on his hip while the other moved to under his chin as he surveyed her. The young woman turned away.

"Aw come on, **"** his eyes drifted over her back, over her behind and down her legs. The young woman had been given military training since she was five till she moved out for university. Given the couple of years of lacked intense training, her body still had a light layer of muscle; mostly visible around her stomach and legs. **"** Take a compliment once in a while **,"** the hologram smirked spotting her ears turn red. **"** baaaabe, baaaaby, come ooooon, **"** he purred trying to move around her slender form to see her face. Something she refused to allow. He continued to eagerly analysis her body. **"** Show me that pretty lil' smile. **"**

"Go. Away," she growled, pulling the fitted dress over herself, tugging at the gemmed hem trying to bring it down past her knees. It just wasn't working. And neither were Jack's words of _encouragement_. If anything, he made her feel more self-conscious about her body. "You push your luck too far sometimes," she murmured to herself more than him, pushing a couple of her choppy bangs back as she gazed at herself in the mirror.

Alice absolutely loved it. Even though she could do without the gems, she wasn't going to openly complain about it. Pulling a hand to her chin, her head tilted to the side for a moment. _'Maybe breaking the bank, this one time wouldn't be so bad,'_ she thought with a glance to the hologram, who was looking at himself in the same mirror, frowning before pushing his hair back even if it didn't budge under his large hand. He hadn't even taken notice of her staring, or even heard her words. He seemed to be memorized by his own reflection.

The young woman beside him couldn't help but study his taller, thicker form. She had a feeling he was so much thinner because of the layers he worn, four from counting. But that wasn't what she was concentrating on. It was his expression. His body posture. His face. It made her wonder a lot about what he was like before he became what he was in front of her.

Would he kill her like he threatened to do every time she told him to _'fuck off'_? Would he strangle her like he said he would, each time she ignored him? Would he tease her like he had done moments ago if he was beside her in person? Able to touch her. Able to move her. Able to physically gaze into her eyes like he would do when he took on his serious stance, never breaking eye contact while she would, whenever her stomach dropped or her heart fluttered. A lot passed through her mind in that moment, tearing herself away from him when he cleared his throat, smirking in her direction.

 **"** Looks like somebody's thinkin', **"** he teased her, a frown appearing on her lips as she turned away to remove the dress. **"** Got somethin' to say pumpkin? Go on. Tell me what's rattling round in that big empty breadbox of yours~ **"**

"Oh, go fuck yourself," she rolled her blue orbs at him, spotting the sneaky chuckle he drew out while looking back to the mirror in front of him.

 **"** Trust me cupcake. If I could, I woulda done it years ago, **"** he bragged, pushing back his bangs some more before leaning his face closer to the mirror, tilting it to the side, a toothy grin on his lips, **"** Damn. Even as some jacked up hologram- I'm still smokin' hot. **"**

"Oh, kill me now..."

One thing she knew for certain, the gala was going to either calm her, or kill whatever sanity she had left. She hoped for the former.

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter six of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 _ **This chapter's question is: If you could bring any piece of tech from our world to the Pandora, what would it be?**_

 _ **Answer: Microwave burrito maybe? Show it to Scooter? It'll be sweet.**_


	7. Gala

Chapter 7

* * *

 **March 1** **st** **, 2023.**

 **Wednesday. 17:42.**

Maybe people were born with nerves of steel, while some just pretended to have them. Others just adapted to their surroundings and grew them. Jack, was a mixture of the last two, although there were times when even he would freak out in certain situations. One of them was now, something he was keeping tightly under wraps.

"But I'm weak, and what's wrong with that?" For the last couple of hours, Alice had been singing while cleaning her small but cosy apartment of hers. Not because it was messy, or even dusty. Because she was expecting her new roommate tomorrow. Well, she was told tomorrow. But from what she had been told before, she wasn't sure- but just in case. Also, because her brother had left her living room in a state resembling a barn so she was left hoovering, soaping and polishing the room from top to bottom to stop herself from going insane.

Okay, it was horrible.

This British woman hated dirt. Yet she was more than happy to play paintball which would normally result in more than half of the team getting covered from top to bottom with the substance.

"Boy, oh boy I love it when I fall for that," and of course, Jack wanted to complain about her singing. Tell her she sucked and such but since he wanted her in a good mood for the Gala tonight, he was forcing his mouth shut, absentmindedly watching whatever movie was playing on Sky Action.

Whatever it was, the odd movie involved four scientists and some business man with a last name called Doom. What a great conversation starter that was. It didn't help that Jack had watched this movie three times now. He almost thought it was payback for killing all the bandits in his past. Boredom was not something he dealt with well. The man was half tempted to throw himself out the window just to see what would happen if he did.

"I'm weak, and what's wrong with that? Boy, oh boy I love it when I fall for that," Alice sung softly to herself, tossing the two polish covered rags to the side as she headed to her piano. Once the brunette was sat down, she lightly played the tune of her song, having played it many times before.

It was then that Jack snapped. The former CEO growled while walking right up to her, letting out the loudest yell he could make.

 **"** SHUT. UP! **"** He screamed, his voice glitching almost to the point his speech sounded like blue screen chatter. Alice stumbling off of the piano chair while he towered over her. **"** Just- shut the hell UP already! **"**

The lights flickered for a moment, static running across her skin as he glared. The tv switched channels rapidly, lighter objects fell from the dining room table and her stomach dropped.

 **"** Do you think this is fun? What's going on right now is fun to you? Are you an idiot?! **"** He roared, reaching to grab her wrist but when it phased through, he blinked but his features quickly returned to anger. **"** For. Freakin'. Sake! UGH! **"** Jack watched the younger stumble to her feet glancing to her wrist catching the lightest of bruises blooming on her skin. Neither of them took much notice of it as she backed away from him, holding up her hands.

He was freaking out. Majorly freaking out about the event that was going to take place in the next hour or so. She knew it. He knew it. But damn was he letting his nerves show.

 **"** Here you are, singing your pretty lil' lungs out like a _goddamn child_ and there I am, over freakin' there watching some _dumbass_ movie about some stupid _fakeass_ heroes. **HEROES**! Those aren't heroes and- **"** he paused, his lips pulling into a thin line.

"J-Jack?"

 **"** Off topic. **"**

"Right..."

He continued.

 **"** Anyways, **"** he pulled his hands together, pulling the tips of his fingers to his nose trying to calm himself in the form where he could not physically let his anger out like he was used to doing. **"** Get. Your shit together, **"** getting back onto his train of thought, he walked towards her till he was right in Alice's personally space. **"** Get in that goddamn bedroom, strip, and get that tight lil' ass in that dress. _Now._ **"**

Never, in her entire life had Alice fled from someone she had respect for. Never.

But that had suddenly changed when Jack ordered her to move. To get the hell away from him. She would lie if she said he didn't scare her. Just then, he _terrified_ her. She had never taken him seriously up till now, when the lights flickered, her hearing buzzed and electricity flew up her spine. When she was out of sight, the rapid flashing of the hologram stalled for a moment like he was frozen before regaining its steady flickers.

Jack wasn't one-hundred present sure what had overcome him just now, dropping back to float and stare at the ceiling as his eyes searched the bricks for an answer of some sort. He couldn't recall a single time he had spoken to her like that since he regained consciousness.

Sure. She could be overly annoying to him, something he normally ignored or teased her about to make her stop. She had never snapped enough to make him retaliate with anger, nor had she ever picked a fight with him.

The former CEO had never snapped with anger towards her like that. He could only blame the Gala, it was the only thing that was standing out in his mind. He wasn't sure what had hit him, but he wasn't angry at himself for yelling. If anything, he was annoyed with the stress he was feeling despite not being in a physical body.

"Crap!" A sudden yell pulled him from his thoughts, pulling himself to the doorway as Alice sat down by the mirror, covering her nose sheepishly glancing to him for a moment before away. This rose Jack's curiosity. Strolling closer, he smirked seeing her turn her entire body away from him.

When she didn't speak, he spoke first.

 **"** Kiddo, what're you hiding there? **"** He questioned, his voice dropping into a lighter tone as her shoulders tensed up when he placed his hand on her neck. The hairs rose there, he was unsure why but it was something he decided to bring up later tonight if it wasn't brought up straight away. Of course, Jack wanted the spotlight as soon as possible.

When she pulled her hand away from her nose, a small trickle of blood slid down to her lips. He smirked watching this, chuckling which only made the other brunette frown more before jumping to her feet.

"Don't," she threatened, moving across the room to grab a tissue from near her bed. The hologram only snickered watching her move.

"Well, pumpkin, call me crazy but that looks sexy on you. **"**

"Crazy."

There was a small, silent pause.

"Heh, very funny, Kid, **"** he humoured her in attempts to calm her nerves after what had happened before. It worked, just, watching her change and get ready slowly, giving him time to think and absentmindedly chat to her. **"** Do you think there'll be food? **"**

"I dunno," glancing to the man lying across her bed, the young woman continued to assault her eyes with a new set of contacts, earning a small hiss when she blinked. "Dammit."

"They better have some damn food or else I'll throw somebody out a window, **"** he threatened, reaching up to grab the air above him in a strangling motion, the girl only glancing to him in her mirror.

"How?" she questioned, watching the man pause before looking to her with a weak glare. For one, she questioned how he would eat said food. The other, how he would throw the guy out the window.

"... Shuddup. **"**

* * *

 **March 1** **st** **, 2023.**

 **Wednesday. 18:54**

London was surely not the best place to be during the rush hour, between five and seven which Jack had experienced first-hand. He was internally shocked by the amount of people that could squeeze into one place. Alice could only hint there was an even busier place where people were actually hired to push more people into the train. He called bullshit. She called it Tokyo. One of the places she wanted to visit most. Mainly to take a selfie with one of the vending machines for a joke.

 _'See. We aren't late,'_ she nagged mentally as she entered the code at the door before stepping into the ever so tall and impressive looking Hype main building.

"Handsome Jack is never late. Unless I'm pissed off, drunk or hungover. Or a mixture of all three, **"** he smirks seeing her glance to him.

Jack merely strolled in beside her, his left arm positioned like she was to take it which he showed with a large, cheeky grin across his face. The girl rolled her eyes as she walked past him over to the front desk.

"Hello. I'm here for the Gala," she said as the woman glanced up from her computer, a small nod before she looked back down.

"Your name please."

"Alice Jones," she spoke confidently, glancing to Jack who was looking around like he was surveying the area. She could only guess he was looking for other Users like herself and Simon. There was a feeling about the Asian man which hinted he was important, different somehow but they both couldn't have guessed he also had a voice in his head. He never glanced away from her once like she did whenever Jack did something unexpected. She could only guess his AI could behave him or herself.

"The Ion Gala is being held in room four-nine-five. Floor thirty-two," the lady behind the desk, known as Meg said, mentioning to the elevator beside her to the right. "Here is your ID," she passed over a small card the side of a driving licence. "Scan it to enter. I hope you enjoy your time."

The bedazzled young woman nodded her head with a small thanks before heading inside the elevator, already there and waiting. Once inside, she pressed the card to the small scanner near the buttons, feeling it move without even pressing a button.

Once they passed floor twelve, Jack pixelized himself beside her looking pleasantly happy despite his little outburst earlier.

 **"** You ready for this? You're probably pissing yourself with excitement like I am. Well, why wouldn't ya- we're meeting the hotshots! We're playing with the big boys now baby! **"** He cheered, grinned while giving her a small holographic nudge with his elbow. **"** You're probably having one of those happy fits you women have. Right? Riiiight? I'm right aren't I? **"** He tried to tug a smile or grin out of her at least, something that didn't come as her eyes drifted back to the elevator door. She couldn't help it, her stomach was doing flips. On the other side of this door, she would be meeting other Users like herself and the thought of them hating her was terrifying.

The man's eyes travelled up her body for a moment, his bottom lip sticking out as he frowned feeling the dread practically radiating from her body.

Finally, he put his finger to her cheek watching the girl physically flinch away from him because of the static as well as slight fear. What happened earlier was still lingering in the back of her mind.

The CEO frowned more.

 **"** Lookie here pumpkin, **"** he started, phasing his hand through her cheek, watching the young woman finally meet his eyes. **"** What happened earlier- **"**

The doors shot open. Within seconds, a small boy no older than six ran in and hugged Alice around her stomach tightly, almost like he feared his arms would pass through her. The AI was left speechless but the unfamiliar child as he pulled his head out from under her breasts grinning, missing a few baby teeth.

"She's here! She's finally here!"

"Noah!" A more feminine voice called from the room, a girl with dyed blonde walked out with a frown across her face. The boy, Noah, instantly detached himself from Alice to turn to face the new face. "What do we say about running off?"

"It could get me kidnaped, killed or worse," he answered with a pout. The young programmer couldn't help but watch the interaction. The young boy stomped his feet. "But I got bored, Scarlett! And- I wanted to see her! She's kinda cute!"

"Well, the kid ain't wrong, **"** Jack was shot a glare for that comment, looking back to the blonde. **"** But whoa. You can tell this chick's had a _looot_ of surgery- don't gimme that look! I've never had any surgery- I'm one-hundred percent Handsome Goddamn Jack, **"** She ignored his immature ranting, watching the child grab her hand and tug her down the halls till they got to room four-hundred and five, pulling her further into the room.

It a was fairly stylish room with metal panelling for walls and a lush, gold for the carpet. There was a long table seated for six people, each chair supporting a different colour- a subtle change seeing as everything else in the room followed the colour scheme of gold, silver, brown and black.

 **"** Well. Looks like those idiots on the board can do somethin' right after all, **"** the former CEO murmured to himself beside his user, walking step-in-step with the young woman as she let the young boy lead her over to the table. Her big blue eyes travelled across the room, pausing on the Asian she had encountered before. It took him a moment to take in her presence, pulling his lips away from his glass with a small nod of his head.

"Great to see you could make it," he spoke, sending a small smirk in her direction causing the hologram beside her to grunt and start to explore the room, his sharp ears staying on the people around the room though.

"I had no intention of missing an event like," she paused, looking around at the refreshments in the middle of the table, ranging from fruit she had never seen before to wine. Overall, it looked pretty impressive. Clearing her throat, she took a seat in the middle. "This. I was curious what other Users there were."

"There are currently only six," the young Noah circled around the table cheerfully, taking the seat opposite Alice. When he was properly seated, he grinned and waved. Slowly, she returned it. Alice was starting to wonder how a child so young could have a port inserted in his temple. The legal age was sixteen after all, he looked no older than six, at the very most. "There was more but Walker said they had to go away," when saying this, the small child frowned, grabbing a glass of lemonade from in front of him.

"Go away?" She questioned, looking to Scarlett for a moment before Simon who turned his head away, taking another sip from his glass. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Isn't it obvious?" The lady beside her questioned, a small chuckle escaping her lips as she crossed her legs under her red summer dress. The programmer's stomach dropped hearing this.

"…"

 **"** Wait-wait-wait- don't say a word, kiddo! **"**

"Please-"

 **"** Don't! **"**

"Explain."

"No need," a voice from the front of the room stopped Noah from answering her, the grin dropping from his face as everyone turned to the two new adults, watching the two take their seats at the front grabbing a glass of wine each.

The male who spoke only raised a glass in Alice's direction, a tiny smile barely visible across his thin lips.

"I'm pleased to see you could make it to the Gala-"

"I owe you ten. Hi!" the dark-skinned woman beside him spoke, pouting for a moment before taking a sip of her wine as the brunette spotted the dimples in her cheeks. It wasn't the first time she was confused this evening, but within the last couple of minutes, it had been taken to a whole new step. "Anyways, I'm sure introductions are needed, _riiight_ ," she smiled, pushing back a long raven bang from her eyes. "I'm Kaiya Green. Nice to meet you, Miss Jones."

The first words that came into her mind were Chesire Cat Smile as she watched the woman introduce herself, giving a short bow before looking to the man beside her.

This gentleman looked almost like the polar opposite of Kaiya. Blonde hair verses her black hair. Light blue eyes against her dark voided brown ones. Her skin was devilishly dark, hinting an African origin despite the lack of accent while his skin was even paler than Alice's.

His clothes alone reminded her of some sort of Arch Angel. A white jumper, golden scarf and black dress pants. Kaiya's dress reminded her of a demon of seduction, with a wide opening in the front and black glittery spackles to match the black silky fabric.

"Walker Green," he spoke, snapping Alice out of her trance as she hadn't even noticed she was staring at this scar which stretched from the bottom of his left earlobe to his cheekbone. It looked painful- but almost natural. "Pleasure to make your acquaintance," he spoke, raising his glass to her.

After a moment, she grabbed a glass of wine herself as no one else was moving, breathing even. With a small nervous smile, she raised her glass.

"The pleasure is all mine," after the two shared a mutual nod, everyone took their assigned seats. The programmer couldn't help but let her eyes wonder to the two leaders at the front while everyone exchanged small talk for the moment. Kaiya and Walker were also exchanging private whispers in each other's ears, a smile across her lips and a frown on his.

After a moment, he pulled away shaking his head before grabbing the small remote which laid between his knife and fork. Jack phased himself to this man's side as he pressed the green button, a small opening appearing in front of each person as a small circular USB popped out. The tiny thing reminded her of the storage device that Hugo gave her when she first inserted Jack into her core.

"Everyone, you know the drill," the cheerful ravenette chimed while picking up her own chip and brought it to her forehead, the entire room excluding Alice followed her example. Instead, she fidgeted in her seat, twisting the small object around her fingers. Jack seemed to notice her hesitance to it, especially when no one spoke a word when she didn't follow their motions.

 **"** You've got nothin' to worry about, **"** he moved himself back to her side, standing in the large gap between the other chair to her right. "If somebody else tries to screw with your head, I'll kill 'em, **"** he tried to sound supportive but he was deadly serious. There was nothing. Absolutely nothing in her head apart from her memories. And having been in her brain for so long- months now, he didn't feel like sharing the information. He enjoyed knowing things other didn't know. Especially when it gave him an advantage of some sort.

She stared into his pixeled eyes for a moment before bringing them back to the chip. It took her a moment to calm her nerves, watching the others insert it without so much of a flinch. Maybe it was the idea of her brain being fried like before, or maybe it was because she had no idea why they were inserting chips into their cores. Nonetheless, Alice pushed the feeling aside and shoved the small grey chip inside, an involuntary shiver making its way up her spine when the connection was made for the first time.

When the line stabilized, a sudden weight dropped on her shoulders so heavy that even Jack struggled for a moment when the first proper feeling of anything hit him. It was strange, but it didn't last long. The young woman clenched her eyes close when the feeling shot through the rest of her body.

 **"** Ughh- nauseous. Feelin' nauseous **,"** Jack murmured, closing his mouth even though he knew in the back of his mind that he couldn't throw anything up as a hologram. **"** I'm tastin' puke- oh God- that's so gross- **"** it hadn't even struck him yet that he was actually tasting something for the first time. His sense of taste and feeling had returned, for now.

Both programmers were struggling to contain this feeling of nausea, Alice reopening her eyes when it suddenly pasted and she spotted a difference in the room atmosphere. The lights were brighter. The air felt heavier. There were more eyes in the room.

"Welcome," Walker spoke up, her eyes darting to him but they didn't stay on him, but instead drifted to the holographic man beside him. Taking a better look around, everyone was seated with another right by their side. All radiating a glitchy blue. "To the Gala of Users."

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter seven of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 ** _Thank you to my newest reviewer: Heavenly Condemned. Love you :3 and you'll only know from continuing to read this story- mwhahahaha~!_**

 _ **This chapter's question is: Would you, if you had to, eat a Skag?**_

 _ **Answer: In this world- HELL NO! In the Pandora world, where it's a normal piece of meat... probably. _**_


	8. Dead rising

Chapter 8

"Words birds thirds turds. **"** – Any hologram speaking.

 _ **'**_ _Words birds thirds turds._ _ **'**_ \- Any hologram thinking.

* * *

 **March 1** **st** **, 2023.**

 **Wednesday. 19:18**

Not everything was ever as it seemed. Perfect people normally had the biggest flaws, and the evillest people never had bad intentions. A chain reaction starts everything. For the two programmers, a long chain of unfortunate events had plopped them down in the middle of a situation completely foreign to them, despite both being from completely different backgrounds.

The light around the two was bright, a new option popping up in front of the former businessman, taking his attention momentary while Alice rubbed her eyes sheepishly.

Jack was having fun with his new panel, tracing his fingers over the wardrobe he had obtained, switching outfit after outfit till he found a suit he liked. With a nod, he glanced around. Before the man's eyes stopped on one certain man, his lips twisting down into a scowl as he growled, pulling his bangs back successfully this time. When the light dimmed into a silent glow, his mind was brought back to the situation at hand.

Speechless. That was certainly one of the many words that could describe how Jack and Alice were feeling as they both stared at the many new members of the Gala seated around the long table. There were a few familiar faces around the room for the former CEO, while his User was left looking around as confused as a child on their first day of school. Was she supposed to know any of these people? She didn't recognise anyone. Jack's attention was on the man in front of him.

 **"** Great. Just greaaaaaaat. They brought back Namayaka or... whatever your name is, **"** the AI speaks, frowning in the direction of the shorter doctor sat opposite him. After a moment, he looked over to the two hosts of the Gala staring straight at him, analysing the man in detail as he jabbed a thumb in the doctor's direction. **"** What the hell is going on? I thought this thing was for the rich, smart and successful. **"**

 **"** He's talking about me! **"** The short doctor whispered to Noah sat beside him, his cheeks darkening even under the holographic blue while the child's wide eyes glanced to him before back to the situation unfolding. **"** He's really talking about me. Oh my God, he must like me! Even death can't separate us! **"**

 _'Okay then. Weirdo alert.'_

 _ **'**_ _Yeah. No duh, cupcake._ _ **'**_

Shooting the man a small glare, Alice's eyes drifted back to Walker and Kaiya as they glanced between each other for a split moment. When their eyes returned on Jack, the impatient man continued.

 **"** Well? I don't see your lips smacking. Make with the information already, **"** he pushed, plopping down on the holographic chair beside him as his User noticed the blue spoons, forks and more on the table in front of their chairs. It was set for starters, mains and desserts. It made her question just what these people were capable of.

"Doctor Nakayama is a very special case," said man being talked about seemed to shuffle up straighter in his seat although no one seemed to glance in his direction. Walker moved to grab his wine glass again, taking another sip as the man sat beside him copied his actions. "Since he technically kick-started this project, it was only fair in our eyes that he be compensated for his achievements by being brought back as well. To continue with his great work."

Jack scoffed, moving his hands behind his head to relax further into his chair. **"** Yeah. A great invention or two and he's in this program? You must have a long list of idiots waiting then, **"** he spoke, glancing to the other AIs, like himself but stopped when he took notice of the two by the hosts. **"** Wait-wait-wait a minute. Uh, why are the founders here and not- I dunno. Revived already? **"**

The woman beside Kaiya chuckled dryly at him, intertwining her fingers as she rested them on the table. Hearing the words 'founders' only made Alice feel even more nervous of the situation she was in.

 **"** A couple of reasons, John, for one would be there is no stored DNA of our bodies- and the idea of taking another's over does not interest us one bit, **"** she shook her head, moving to push some of her bangs back. The woman, Alma, was by far the thickest person in the room, but her aura along made your eyes quickly glance over her like she wasn't there.

 **"** Correct. We're merely here to observe and add our input into Hype when necessary, **"** Lawrence spoke next, keeping his hands in his lap like he had been when he phased in with the others. **"** As well as finish any projects we had left undone, **"** his eyes moved to Jack, a heated glare the former CEO shot him which was returned with a harsh gaze. **"** While you discarded me with one less troublesome thing to complete. I am not thankful, nor am I aggravated by your decision, just to be clear. **"**

 **"** Yeah. Couldn't care less, **"** Jack waved his hand at the man, watching from the corner of his eye as Alice glanced over to Jack who only seemed to return it with shuffling straighter in his seat. It was then the handsome leader took notice that he wasn't the only former CEO in the room.

 **"** It's disappointing to see your attitude has gotten worse over the years, _John_. I'm almost thankful you killed me, **"** both Alice and her partner turned to the man sitting beside Simon, away from their line of sight but the voice was enough to make Jack's code of veins boiling. **"** You spared me the pain of watching you run Hyperion into the ground. Look at you now, your own User is scared of you. **"**

 _'Wait... what's that?'_ Alice questioned the name Hyperion as it was the only part that caught her attention, raising a brow in Jack's direction which he bluntly ignored to glare at the man sat a chair over from him. Jack's rage only grew with his words, every single one of them.

 **"** Oh great, _THIS_ asshole's here too? **"** The programmer yelled quite loudly, standing up from his chair to the point that if it was real. It would have toppled over from the force he used. His user could physically feel his anger running through her veins, only making her feel panicked by his rage.

 _'Jack please, calm down-'_

 **"** Why the hell is this bastard here? Just- just what could he possibly have that you morons want? **"** He questioned the two, ignoring Alice when she spoke up to him. When he didn't get an immediate answer, he turned to Tassiter, growling as he started walking towards him. **"** And what the hell did you mean by _'run Hyperion into the ground'_ I did a damn great job you ignorant little s- **"**

"Enough!" Alice yelled, standing up as well, her hand on the table feeling weak from the overflowing rage coursing through her veins. It was overwhelming feeling this much anger at once. It was so strong, it was frightening. "Jack. Please. Sit down."

Jack paused in his step, turning on his heels to face the girl. When her expression didn't drop and her gaze didn't look away like he expected, he took a step closer. Nothing. Another step. Nothing. He spoke,

 **"** Tell me pumpkin. If the man or woman you hated, loathed- was standing in front of you- you'd kill 'em, right? **"** He questioned, coming face-to-face with her. He was so far into her personal space, if he was alive, she would be able to feel his breath on her face. **"** So- what do ya do afters? Anything. You'd probably get hammered and fuck somebody. Now, what do ya do when you see that fucker again- the asshole ain't dead, **"** she took a small step back feeling the back of her knees touch the chair behind her. Jack stepped forwards. **"** You kill 'em aga- **"**

"We can talk about this later," she cut him off, watching his eyes narrow when she did so. _'We have to make a good impression. Remember? Or did you let your anger get the better of you- cause from the looks of it, it did.'_ "Please."

Hearing her voice break was new to Jack, and he had looked through even her darkest memories. The last time either of them could recall it happening before was her last major mental breakdown, which was moments after she finished clearing out Daniel's things from his old room. Even now, looking at the things she kept of his brought a tear to her eye. So, to hear this breakage, Jack frowned. He could feel the guilt surfacing in his stomach, a feeling he wasn't at all keen on.

 **"** Whatevers, **"** he grunted, flopping himself down in his assigned seat and lying the back of his head back on the back of the chair. It was then that Scarlett and Noah looked between in other in curiosity while the professor glared at the programmer- Jack's user to be precise. It wasn't known- or even heard of to see a Jack pause in the middle of a rage. It would take either his former girlfriend, Nisha's silver tongue or his daughter's pleas to get him to stop.

This certainly left an impression on Walker and the higher-ups, seeing as this was the first time this had happened in Jack's AI testing. But, of course, this was the first run in the eyes of Jack and Alice.

"Well, back to what we were talking about," the dark goddess hummed while raising from her feet while raising her half full glass to her air. Noah eagerly followed his lead while Simon paused mid-sip to pull his glass away and copy her actions. "Introductions are needed- we can skip Simon and Harold," she waved in Simon and Tassiter's direction before pointing to the only child in the room who looked raring to go. "Shoot!"

"Hi!" The child yelled loud enough for his own AI to flinch away from him. "I'm Noah- Noah like the ark but I'm not religious since that is completely silly," he smiles, adjusting himself nervously in his seat. "I like the colour red and chocolate- oh and sharks. They are like big killing-machines," he grins his toothy grin. Jack only rolls his eyes while moving his chin to rest on his palm, looking away now out of boredom.

 _ **'**_ _Booooooooring._ _ **'**_

 _'Just bear with it, Jack,'_ Alice glanced to her partner, watching him return the look before sighing and adjusting again. _'Thank you.'_

 _ **'**_ _You goddamn owe me, Kid._ _ **'**_

 _'I know.'_

Next was Scarlett, introducing herself as a nurse and User of Mary Quin, an old doctor of the old Hyperion, curing one of the most dangerous viruses that ever stuck their universe. Jack could actually remember the name from reading it once on a PowerPoint, but had no idea from where the name was from. She had died fighting a different decease that got the better of her.

Kaiya described what she did at the company, making all the experimental weapons that supplied their private armies and the army of England as well as America who was currently fighting a war against the V.H. Something the Users were targeted by.

Walker didn't touch much on his likes and dislikes, merely saying his job title: Head of the Robotics department.

He spent more time explaining who the V.H. were than himself. Alice guessed he was only explaining for Jack and herself since she had no doubt that everyone else knew who they were as well as whereabouts they were stationed. They only knew their base was in America and had outposts all around the UK but that was about it.

"They are not to be encountered alone. If you find one, run and hide, phone for help till we get to you. But, most of all," he paused, looking to everyone but mainly towards Alice, their newest member. "Protect your AIs with your life."

The room fell into a dark, uncomfortable silence. Even the livelier members didn't say a word, but instead look along one another till Jack, behind himself, broke the pause.

 **"** So, _who_ the hell are these assholes anyway, **"** he questioned, looking to the hosts although mainly Walker because of his more dominant role as leader of the project. When everyone stopped, they all turned their eyes towards Walker as it seemed that no one else has been informed of this information as of yet.

The man crossed his legs in his seat, relaxing back into his chair before glancing to Lawrence who merely nodded his head. With that, one of Walker's eyes glowed an even brighter blue as a hologram pixelized in the middle of the table, showing a 3D model of a woman's face.

 **"** We have very little information on the organisation, apart from one key fact that surfaced rather recently, **"** his AI pipped up from his seat, uncrossing his hands as he surveyed the room. Most of the Users looked tense while all of the AIs were listening intensely. **"** Most of them originate from Pandora. **"**

Confusion hit Alice like a truck. Glancing to Jack, she noticed his face has screwed up in not thought, but irritation. The name meant something to him- to all of the AIs in the room as most of them wore a similar expression. "Pandora?"

"Isn't that the birthplace of this company?" Noah cheered from his chair, sitting up straighter as he was more excited than confused, unlike the adults. The female programmer frowned, looking to Jack for a moment before back to Walker.

 _'I thought Hype's birthplace was America...'_

 _ **'**_ _EHHHH You're wrong there, cupcake,_ _ **'**_ she almost had forgotten she shared her head with another, slowing down her speeding heartbeat as Jack chuckled at her flinch. When she straightened back up and the calm expression returned, he continued. _**'**_ _I'll tell you later, pumpkin._ _ **'**_

"A planet. That is more than enough information for today."

For the next rest of the night, it was going rather smoothly. Alice developed a sense of everyone's personalities by the end of the night. For one, she adored little Noah to pieces like he was her own little brother. He was happy and active but was very mature with a rather impressive vocabulary at times. He also referred to himself as a Pandoran once, so that only made her wonder where this place 'Pandora' was. The people targeting them were from it as well as Noah. So, where was it precisely? An island? A state in America somewhere, maybe? Where?

Scarlett, bless her soul, was a nurse at a children's hospital and specialised in the care of the terminal patients. What she lacked in personality, she apparently made up for in brains and medicine. Truthfully, she could have done without knowing Scarlett, but her AI was a valued member since she specialised in viruses. It was... well, amazing in Alice's eyes. Until Jack added that it could be spun for around for weapon purposes, like everyone else in the room.

Would Hype be using these AIs for weapons and control? It had never crossed her mind till now and it was now hiding in the back of her head that it could be a possibility. The head of the project to the public was Hugo. He kept track of everyone's progress and sorted people out. Or as her partner put it, sorted them out violently. The former CEO reminded her of her Doctor, how his hand was broken by the man jamming it in a door. If the face of an important project like hers would do that to a doctor, she couldn't possibly imagine what he would do to the members here.

With only minutes of the Gala left, everyone started to pack up and sort themselves out, readying themselves to go. Alice stood up shakily, rubbing her thighs gently before glancing up to the tall Asian beside her.

"I appreciate what you did earlier, you know- I never got a chance to thank you," she smiled, bobbing her head while looking up to the man who loosened his tie while slicking a few bangs back, a couple fell back into place on his forehead. "So. Thank you."

"Don't mention it. Anyone else would have done the same," he says with a shrug, moving to loosen his cuffs before grabbing his suit jacket from the back of his chair. "No thanks necessary."

Alice couldn't help but smile hearing this, adjusting her dress before grabbing the handbag near her feet and pulling it onto her shoulder.

"Thanks- I mean, no thanks... I don't know," she stumbled over her words, earning a small chuckle from the man which was enough to make a little bit of blood run to her cheeks.

 **"** Ughhhh this is painful to watch, **"** her AI spoke from behind her, scaring the living hell out of her as she spun around and glared. He glared back and put his hands on his hips- giving off an almost sassy vibe. **"** Sweetpea. Don't even think about it. **"**

"Think about what?" She questioned, raising a brow at him feeling her cheeks redden more as she knew what he meant, what he was assuming. Before Jack could continue his shaming, Tassiter spoke.

 **"** I must agree with John, regrettably, **"** he said while walking around to Simon's side, the man staying quiet as his eyes darted to his hologram who stroked him beard. The programmer glared while Alice looked between the two. **"** Someone as low as her wouldn't suit Simon, **"** he started, looking to her before Jack, then back to the wall looking uninterested. **"** Low-class, low-income, low... everything really. A little code monkey like herself wouldn't suit a high titled professor like _my_ User, **"** he praised, glancing to Jack who looked more and more pissed with every word he said. By the end of his rant, he was steaming. Only being held back by his User's annoyed gaze.

The young woman just felt more and more annoyed yet depressed with each and every word he said as most of it was true. Her pay was good but most of it went towards rent and other necessaries. She wasn't of any high class, she was middle at most and she was pretty short. She felt Asian, despite that being Simon's ethnicity and he was so much taller than her.

"Don't you think you're saying too much?" Simon glanced to his AI, watching the man shrug his shoulders before turning around.

 **"** Not at all. I'm just stating the facts. Like AI, like User. **"**

Jack snapped.

 **"** Now listen here you Goddamn stupid sonofabitch, **"** he swore, walking towards the other AI pointing a finger at him. **"** You're dead. Just like me- you're fricking dead- so get off your damn high horse before I get up there and strangle agai- **"** before he could continue, Alice felt a small spark in her port.

Barely noticeable at first, but it spread. "A-Ah-!" With intense pain, agony and dizziness hitting her like a train; Simon quickly moved to catch her when her legs gave out.

The AI only took notice of her shock when his own hologram sputtered and flickered for a moment. When he realized what had happened, he saw Alice barely conscious in Simon's arms as he lifted her up. He was speechless for a moment, his mouth opening but no words leaving till he heard a childish voice yell.

"Kai! That wasn't very nice!" Noah yelled from his seat, stopping in the middle of his fangirling with Nakayama to take in the fight that was going on; the professor starting the conversation to protect the boy from witnessing the fight which was something he was already immune to.

"Sorry Hun but everyone has to learn to control their emotions," she sung, straightening out her dress after passing the remote to Walker, said man rolling the thin piece of plastic around in his palm before pointing it at the group.

"While Users need to control their AIs and not let them wild, the A.I.s need to control themselves," he added, smiling like a saint before looking to Simon who avoided his gaze by looking to Kaiya. "That was a warning to keep both of them in-line."

"Yessir," the professor nodded, frowning as he helped the girl stand slowly. The hologram sputtered for a moment, Jack's glare on the angelic man who simply smiled, both of the hosts' AIs disappearing back into their heads as they were both done with the meeting, finding no other reason to show themselves to the others.

Glancing to the girl, Walker stared for a moment before glancing to Jack. "This meeting went a lot better than I had anticipated so I'll let this one incident go. But, in the future, I will not be so kind," with this, he turned to Simon. "Call her a cab. See her home- put it on the project's card," he paused for a moment, his eyes drifting to Jack before back to his barely alert user. "Inform her that her roommate will be moving in next week when she's conscious of her surroundings," his eye glowed for a second before dimming, heading for the door behind him.

"Bye bye," with a small wave, Kaiya followed, smiling as she skipped beside the radiant man. Once the door had closed, Jack exploded.

 **"** I'm gonna kill that sonofabitch! **"** He yelled, reaching to grab the nearest thing to him, which was a glass and hurl it at the door. It would have worked if his hand didn't phase through it first. He cursed again, throwing his arms up before turning to Simon who was practically carrying his partner still. **"** Put her down. _Now_! **"**

"On the floor? **"** the other former CEO questioned, raising a brow at the man in front of him. **"** At this rate, you won't last another month let alone two years, **"** he scoffed, rolling his eyes as he phased back into the mind of Simon, clearly not one to finish a fight. **"** Looks like this one's a failure too **."**

Said man slowly placed Alice down on her chair, hearing her whisper a small thank you before he pulled out his phone, already calling a taxi. The woman's head was spinning and swirling as she struggled to keep her consciousness. Jack could tell, phasing himself closer to her while Scarlett crossed the room to at least safely remove the card from her port.

"She'll be fine. It's about 8mA of current so at most she'll lose muscle control for a couple of hours," she waved her hand as she walked, pushing a few of her bangs back behind her ear. "By the time she gets home... she _should_ be able to walk."

 _'Soo reassuring,'_ Alice shot back at the retreating woman, leaning the back of her head back into the chair finding little strength in holding her head up properly. Moving to straighten her back for a moment was hard, instantly regretting the decision as her stomach lurched. "Ugh..."

"You'll be fine," Simon reassured her, pulling his phone back into his pocket, adjusting his suit. "I've been shocked before. It isn't as bad once it passes."

"Tell that to my head," she muttered loud enough for him to hear, blinking owlishly till her wide blue orbs stopped on Jack who was abnormally close to her, keeping what distance he could between Simon and himself. She watched for a moment more, raising a brow before accepting the help that the Asian provided as he assisted her in walking to the lobby for the taxi.

When the taxi came, the older gentleman assisted her into the cab, paying the driver the set price before slipping a piece of paper into her hand, nodding his head.

Once the door closed, the car moved and the hologram phased himself into the seat beside her, head back into the headrest while his hands covered his eyes with a scowl across his lips. Many things were spiralling around in Jack's mind. He didn't get to even ask a fifth of the questions he had. He didn't get to ask about how he died. How was everyone he had left behind. How was his daughter? His girlfriend? Were they okay? Were they even alive?

His hands clenched tighter as a growl left his lips, biting his lip hard even though it didn't help in the slightest. He felt no pain, no affect to his body but he could feel himself. He could change his clothes now, phase in simple objects. He could do a lot more than what he could before now. But to Jack, it made no difference right now, not knowing the most important answers to his questions which involved the people he loved.

Nisha... ha. Nisha, he could survive without, he had been for most of his life. But Angel, his little girl. It was killing him not knowing how she was doing. Was she still being supplied the eridiam she needed to survive? He had so many unanswered questions.

The man pulled his hands away and to his chest, crossing them as they took a turn, his eyes unconsciously drifting to the sleeping young woman beside him.

 _And then there was her._

Jack shifted his elbow to the window side beside him, resting his chin on his palm as he studied her. Gentle breathes left her lips, her chest rising and falling every couple of seconds signalling she was asleep. His emotions were torn in two when it came to her, Alice.

He held some anger towards her, rage as she had some authority over him and what he could do. She had learnt how to push him into the back of her mind even if it meant giving herself a migraine. That alone irritated him, but the fact her emotions influenced his own drove him insane. She _influenced_ him. She made him feel things that weren't easily explained.

Maybe it was the unknown that annoyed him more than the emotional connection he had to her. He felt worried when she was hurt. He felt anger towards the person or event that caused it. Those feelings he had only recently discovered in the last half an hour. And the fact he felt these towards a woman he had only known for barely three months confused him.

Was it the AI's system controlling his emotions? Was it his own emotions acting on their own? Was it _her_ doing this to him? Jack wasn't even sure of his own emotions, yet alone if the environment and the people around him were affecting them without him realizing it.

 **"** Just what the hell are you doing to me, **"** he murmured to himself, frowning.

His thoughts came to a stop when the cab stopped straight outside the apartment block and she didn't stir. Jack cursed when he moved closer to her, his eyes drifting to her port which was facing him, seeing the crusted blood around it. A sigh escaped the man as he reached for it, but paused when he _felt_ a spark, watching her flinch away from him when it happened.

That's when it hit him. His mind already knew what he could do, and it brought a large, excited grin to his face.

 **"** Don't worry princess. _Just relax_. I'll take the wheel for a few. **"**

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter eight of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 _ **This chapter's question is: So, if you could eat your weight of one food and only ONE food, which would it be?**_

 _ **Answer: Battenberg cake. Handdowns. I'd shuff it in Jack's face and demand he tries it.**_


	9. Roommates

Chapter 9

 **March 6** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Monday. 08:03.**

* * *

The morning had barely started for Alice, it hadn't even started for her partner as he still slept in the back of her mind. But alas, for this young girl, she was left sipping coffee, already showered and dressed ready for her new roommate to make his long-awaited appearance at her door at ten past eight.

Maybe it was the nerves of meeting someone new, or even the fear of it being a man like Hugo or Walker, but she was scared of what this guy would be like. Jack wasn't being much help either, saying he would punch his lights out if he stepped over the lines he had already set for him, something he didn't plan on telling her just yet. This only made her wonder what her AI was plotting in her mind, knowing she couldn't hear the thoughts he had when he was watching from the back of her brain.

Alice gripped her 'Fish are friends, not food' mug tighter in her hands, frowning as she glanced out her window at the rising sun in the distance, something she could see now thanks to the missing apartment building that lay in ruins just a few shops away.

The ruins were now a continuous reminder of the dark shadows that followed her program. After her first Gala, she was always looking over her shoulder for the group that targeted her, something Jack called stupid, but there was always a nudge in her head that stroked fear into her. Just knowing that someone wanted to kill her and take Jack away. She wasn't sure which one scared her more. Dying, or someone taking away the one person she could tell her true thoughts to- even if she didn't want to tell him, he heard them. And regularly talked her to sleep. That reminded her.

Bringing out her phone, she quickly arranged a doctor's appointment at her clinic. Her sleepless nights were starting to get to her, both mentally and at work where she could barely keep her eyes open. Taking a sip of her coffee, she jumped when her doorbell rang, it brought her out of her daze nearly dropping her favourite mug.

 _ **'**_ _Careful, cupcake. Almost made a big boo-boo there,_ _ **'**_ Jack teased in the very back of her mind, a small groan escaping her throat when she realized he was awake. Great, now she had to greet her roommate with a hologram standing behind him, most likely going to make stupid faces.

"Could you please stop sneaking around?" Alice grabbed her mug quickly, dumping it in the sink full of semi-warm soapy water before jogging over to her front door. She stopped a few steps away from it, flattening down her jeans in case of creases as well as her tee shirt.

 **"** Sneak? I don't sneak. Handsome Jack doesn't sneak, **"** he spoke while phasing himself into her sight, leaning back against the wall near her, sparing her a smirk when she glared at his cheeky smile.

"So, you've been here the entire time and didn't bother to tell me you were awake," she questioned with a frown, slipping on her slippers as she approached the door. The former CEO only chuckled, watching every step she made.

 **"** Yeah. **"**

"Oh," ignoring the feeling of stupidity in the back of her head, she plastered on her own social poker face and unlocked her door, opening it up. The sight in front of her wasn't at all what she was expecting. Her mind instantly thought a much older man in a suit, looking more unhappy than annoyed, with a large black suitcase. Similar to what Hugo reminded her of.

This guy was almost the opposite of what she was expecting. The tall, lean man in front of her was wearing a navy sweater vest with yellow stars across the chest and a white dress shirt under it, matched with semi-skinny black jeans which only showed how skinny he really was. Looking up to his face, she saw mismatched blue and brown eyes, slick back brown hair and a nervous smile across his lips. The main thing that fazed her was the port he had on the left side of his temple, the opposite side of hers. She instantly knew he was a nerd of some sort.

It took him a moment to realize she wasn't going to greet him, quickly placing down his two, medium sized suitcases to present her his cybernetic hand, something she hadn't even noticed till now despite its bright golden colour like her own.

"Hi- hello. I Um-" he cleared his throat while lowing it a tone, bringing his other hand to his mouth. His nerves were a lot more apparent compared to her almost perfect poker face. Jack only rolled his eyes at the man, scoffing while walking around to stand behind her, almost like he was trying to size up the man who couldn't see him.

 **"** This guy's no trouble, **"** he added in, looking over her shoulder which only made her ears flare up red for a moment before cooling down. She had almost forgotten about him. **"** Just who is this Princess, **"** the AI questioned while watching the man gather his cool and finally look back to her after a few seconds.

"I'm Rhys," he said as she finally took his hand to shake, being mindful of how tiny they were in his much larger one; he was surprised a programmer could have such small hands, they reminded him of his friend who was known for her feminine traits like this. "I'm a programmer from Hyper-'s the- ah data-mining department," he quickly added, a nervous chuckle and smile leaving him when she glanced back to Jack subconsciously who just sighed and shook his head at the man. "It's nice to finally meet you."

 **"** Someone's short a few chromosomes, **"** she was just surprised Jack knew those words. Feeling her surprise and hearing her back-of-the-mind murmuring, he gave her a short glare before his gaze returned to the man at her door.

She smiled and shook his hand before pulling back and stepping to the side to let the man in. Alice felt a lot better after meeting the man face-to-face. He was such a cute dork. That, and she loved his style.

"Nice to meet you too, Rhys. I'm Alice, come in," she gave him a little nudge, closing the door behind the man as he wheeled the two large black suitcases inside, placing them down by the loveseats. "Want anything to drink?"

 **"** Yeah, two shots of whiskey and somethin' strong to block this lil' shit out. **"**

 _'Not you,_ ' she mentally snapped back at Jack as she grabbed two mugs from the overhead cabinet. The hologram merely gave her an offended expression from across the small kitchen island, huffing and puffing his cheeks while turning his face away from her. She couldn't help but smile slightly at his childish act. "Well?"

"Oh. Coffee's fine."

"Sugar? Milk?"

"Both, three sugars please," she chuckled at his nervous response, pouring the drinks from the already made kettle. Once done, she headed back over to him, offering him the pale blue mug, littered with the word 'MINE' all across it. He couldn't help but snicker when he took it. "Nice mug you got here," he commented, taking it gently from her as a smile spread across his lips at the warmth. March in England was known for its random showers and hail, along with random gusts of freezing cold air.

"Thanks. I like Nemo," she smiled at his comment, taking a sip of her own mug, the same one she was previously using but was quickly rinsed. Rhys chuckled at her blunt response, taking a sip of his own drink. Alice's eyes travelled to the steaming hologram in her kitchen, seeing him practically throwing a tantrum as he tried and failed to hurl a Hello Kitty cookie jar at them. Which she took joy in watching him growl and throw an even bigger fit. What made it even funnier was that he was swearing to himself where she couldn't hear him. Jack had muted himself somehow. She was sure he didn't know how.

A chuckle escaped her, pausing as she remembered Rhys to seated opposite her on the loveseats.

"Oh- sorry, it's just," she struggled to find the right words to explain her laugh, glancing to Jack who was just now taking notice of the change in conversation but what he was doing only made her laugh more. He had somehow materialized a hologram of a cookie jar of a unicorn with two horns, his arms in the middle of tossing it at the pair. "I-I'm sorry- I just can't," she paused to take a deep breath, Rhys looking more than a little confused at her outburst as he glanced between the kitchen across the room and her.

"Oh. Right. Just letting you know," he paused. "I already know about... Jack," he said, placing his mug down neatly on one of the cookie coasters she had on her coffee table. The room was littered with either something techy, girly or rather masculine from what she kept from Daniel; either way, it was a comfortable place to be in for anyone of any styles. "It might take a little time to get used to seeing you... talking to him- but don't change how you do things because of me," he said, giving a small awkward smile along with even more awkward thumbs up. "I'm here to help. Make your life... easier so to say, okay?"

"Sure," she shrugged her shoulders not entirely caring about if he made her life 'easier' but as long as he didn't make anything difficult, she didn't really care what he did in his spare time. Oh- "As long as you don't bring any girls round without warning. I'm good."

Rhys' face started to light up at her words, raising both of his hands in slight panic.

"Huh- whoa- no! I-I I wouldn't do that- I'm- well. I'm not that kinda guy," Jack couldn't help but walk over to Alice while snickering at the man who was practically stuttering like a nervous teen at his first girl-boy sleepover. "Really- I'm not," she raised a brow at his words, making him wave his hands slightly. "I'm not!"

"Suuuuure," she smiled, shaking her head with a small chuckle as she took a sip of her coffee.

 **"** Whatever you say, kiddo, **"** Jack added in from behind her, leaning himself over the back of the settee with his arms resting on the spine of the loveseats, practically over her. **"** Don't think this dork could getta girl though- I mean, _look at him_! **"**

Rhys only seemed to shuffle back into his seat more, taking a sip of his drink while Jack made himself more comfortable leaning his weight on the leather surface below him. Alice couldn't help but glance between the two men. Already, she was starting to feel awkward.

Standing up, she headed over to her now spare bedroom.

"Lemme show you to your room before I head to work," she smiled, watching Rhys jump to his feet with a small smile on his face.

"Yeah. That'd be great. Thank you."

"No problem."

* * *

 **March 6** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Monday. 19:01.**

Getting home earlier was a God-sent normally to this simple programmer, a smile already apparent on her face as she hopped down the steps to the Underground. Jack wasn't near as pleased as she was, yawning to himself while flying beside her, his feet not even touching the ground.

 _'Heading home early. So much yay,'_ she hummed mentally to herself, jumping on the train which had just pulled into the station. The young woman wasn't even annoyed by the fact she didn't get a seat, she was happy just to get on board at seven in the afternoon. Jack took the side opposite her, leaning back into the wall being careful of his head. _'Oh smile, would you?'_ she cracked a smile at the man, spotting the man as he rolled his eyes.

 **"** Pumpkin, I'll smile when we get out this sardine can, **"** he smirked at most, making her smile grow just slightest as the train came to another stop in the station. More people piled into the small section of the train, Alice scooting back further into the closed door as others entered her personal space. **"** That's it. I'm gone. Tell me when we're outta this shithole! **"**

A small chuckle escaped her hearing Jack quickly zip out of her sight, looking away to the side as a tall man stood in front of her. She jolted when he pressed a hand beside her head to help keep some distance between them.

"Sorry 'bout this, miss," he murmured, glancing down to her just as she looked up to him as well. He was almost a full head taller than her, noticing the impression sort of tattoo he had under his skin just above his left eye; at first glance she thought it was a tattoo. "Haah, still not getting used to this thing."

"Not from London?" She questioned, answering the small talk with her own, catching his eye again. He smiled slightly, shaking his head.

"Nope. There's no way I could get used to this hassle and bustle. Even the early mornings in the military was better than this crap," he answered before offering her his hand in the tight space. "The name's Axton."

"Cool name," was her instant reply, blushing just slightly for not thinking that and just letting the thought fly. The comment before stuck in her head when he mentioned the armed forces, the smile just growing slightly. Alice took his hand, giving it a firm shake even though she wasn't sure why. They were on a Tube, and there was a huge chance they wouldn't be seeing each other again, after this. "I'm Alice." So... there wasn't any harm in giving her real name, right?

"Cute name for a cute girl," he smirked, taking his hand back before glancing to the little strip near her head which said the next station. "This your stop?" He gestured to the board, moving back enough for her to turn around and check.

"Yup," the programmer nodded meekly, feeling the train slowly coming to a stop which made her wonder how she was going to get through the small crowd. Seeing what she was thinking, he made a small gap for her along with sending a small wink when she looked up to him. "Thanks. I appreciate it."

"Just lemme buy you a drink next time," the soldier smoothly hinted with a small push on her shoulders, helping her escape the confined container that was the Underground Tube Train. Her cheeks flushed slightly at the mere gesture, giving him a tiny smile.

"Maybe. Bye," with a quick wave, she made her way darting in and out of the crowd, a confused frown making its way onto her face as she rushed out of the station. _'What the literal hell was that about?'_

 **"** It's called gettin' _hit on_ babycakes, **"** Jack popped into her line of sight in front of her, floating backwards while posing like he was leaning against a wall; momentarily shocking her.

The man looked a little irritated, but otherwise the same. The irritation, Alice was guessing, was caused by the crowd in the sardine can of a Tube Train he was in- this guy was otherwise antisocial unless he was in the limelight. Then he could be the most social blue butterfly that ever lived.

 **"** But just lettin' ya know- no hanky spanky while I'm here. As much as I'd like to see you on the bed, floor, table- pretty much any solid surface moaning, a guy on top of you would be a put off. Got it- **"**

 _'Wait-wait-wait- what?'_ Her thoughts came to a stop, stuttering as she glanced back to the man who had spun around to walk beside her with a frown on his face. _'What- no, ew. The idea of you watching me doing something like- like_ that _is just- whoa no. Extremely uncomfortable,'_ her mind felt broken as she struggled to make a full sentence, frowning while shaking her head.

Alice pulled her scarf closer to her face.

Jack only chuckled heartedly hearing her broken lines, shaking his head as it was always amusing seeing the normally level-headed programmer stutter and blush like a school girl. Sometimes he had a hard time believing she was once one at times.

 **"** Isn't that cute, little Ally baby never had an audience before, **"** he gushed, purposely making her more anxious as she walked down the long high-street to her home, basking in the glory of her red cheeks and glancing gaze. The CEO regularly found amusement in his employees' panic and terror, but his User's embarrassed expressions had to be a new top favourite for him- along with his daughter's smiles.

 _'God, you're annoying,'_ Alice swatted at the man's hologram as she walked down a more secluded path.

 _ **"**_ _Pfft. Annoyin'? Me? Nahh, I'm a planet's heartthrob, sweetcheeks._ _ **"**_

She started a short, soft hum as she made her way back to her apartment. She couldn't help but yawn as she made her way inside and finally set foot into the small hallway which lead to the living room. The smell of cooked food hit her nose first, wrinkling it slightly as she kicked off her boots while unbuttoning her top two shirt buttons.

"Rhys?" She called into the dark apartment, her eyes narrowing as she made her way down the small, thin hallway into the living room, spotting a single light on in the kitchen. The dark tiles seemed brighter for some reason, rubbing her eyes momentarily as her new roommate closed the fridge to reveal himself, holding up a couple cans of London Pride up with a small smile.

She grinned lightly, chuckling slightly at his sheepish smile.

"Nice to see you're settling in well."

"I made dinner- nothing special really. Pizza, garlic bread," he said, mentioning to the oven by his thigh. "I also went and bought a movie, and got us a case of beer. I- er. I wasn't sure what kind you liked so I went with something popular," he paused, looking to the side for a moment, then back to the drink in his hand with a partial frown. "Apparently."

She smiled at his sceptical expression, stepping into the kitchen and helping him carry the four cans over to the living room. "I'll drink just about anything," she confirmed, chuckling as she cracked open her first one. Rhys followed her action, clicking cans before taking their first sips. The hologram in the back of her mind gagged at the friendly action, materialising himself but kept himself out of her sight for the mean time. "Not bad," she nodded, watching her new friend wince slightly before nodding his head. "Too strong?"

"No. Just, not what I'm used to," he gave her a small smile, taking another sip of the ale while she simply rolled her eyes slightly when his body tensed up again. She could already guess he wasn't the alcohol drinking person, unlike herself. The programmer had no problem finishing her first can as her companion got the pizza and bread out, assisting him in carrying it over to the table.

She made herself comfortable by pulling the grey blanket from the back of the settee over herself before she made herself a small plate, watching Rhys make himself familiar with her old PS4, starting the movie.

A classic in her opinion, it just made her laugh that he had chosen War for the Planet of the Apes for an after-work movie. She only hoped he had seen the last ones before the current one. Her Dad apparently used to be a huge fan of the Planet of the Apes; something she liked to think she had inherited.

"Nice one."

"So, I'm going to assume I made a good choice?" He asked her, chuckling slightly while taking a bite out of his pepperoni pizza. She copied his motions, humming.

"Yup. For your first official decision in this apartment; you made a great one. Good job," she winked at him, watching his cheeks slightly redden at the friendly gesture. He smiled, nodding his head softly as he continued to eat the glorious circle of heaven in front of them.

It was around eleven when the two finally said their good nights and headed off to bed, Alice having herself a quick five-minute shower before she stepped into her room. She jumped slightly when Jack materialized himself onto her bed, shirtless, which was becoming a familiar sight now that he could change outfit at will with the set outfits he had been given. He was always making requests for new ones, something she put in her email report in order to make him shut up.

 **"** You and dumb-dumb were gettin' aweeeeefully chummy back there, **"** he teased with an equally annoyed frown, leaning his back against the headboard behind him. The young woman only rolled her eyes at his words, heading to her drawers to pull out a shirt and shorts to change into for the night. **"** The hell do you think you're doing? **"**

"I dunno, socialising?" She chuckled slightly at his dry tone, stripping off the first layer of clothes before tugging on her thicker white tee-shirt then shorts. Her figure became ridged hearing his grunt right next to her ear, her fingers tightening around the bottom of her shorts. The young woman knew he had moved himself to behind her, the slight static tickling her back like body heat while his breath was apparent on her shoulder. "I can make new friends too, you know."

 **"** With that dunderhead? **"** Jack questions, raising a brow at her comment moving one hand to her right shoulder before moving himself to face her. Moving one hand to her chin, he tilted it up slowly, smiling lightly when she followed his hand so they could see one another's expression, knowing what he was trying to do- at least mentally. **"** Baby, all you need is me. That prick isn't worth your time, really **,"** he smirked, pulling his hand away when her lips dipped into a frown at his words.

He already knew that his sentence wasn't worded in a way she liked or agreed with.

 **"** Look, pumpkin- **"**

"Jack- don't," she raised her hands to him, taking a step forward. He could feel the angry in her chest, but couldn't help but watch as she held back it perfectly. Her tone didn't dip, her face didn't change, her body language didn't budge in the slightest. "I'm sorry but- I don't want to hear it. Good night."

With that being said, she moved over to her side of the bed and dropped, grabbing her pillow before pulling it to her chest. Now she could feel the rage in her veins flowing, quickly turning into anxiety when he came closer to her.

Jack opened his mouth, but closed it after a moment as the programmer couldn't think of what words he could say to convince her that she was wrong. That his opinion mattered more than hers. The only words that were coming to mind were things he would say to his Angel when she was upset with him.

The former CEO wasn't sure why she reminded him of his daughter, but at the same time... she didn't. Quite the opposite, actually. He could feel his anger leaving him as his mind drifted to his baby girl, his eyes moving to the young woman curled up facing the wall, away from him.

The hologram sighed, bringing his hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose as he sat down at the end of the bed. It made no noise, but after being with him for four months now, she could tell where he had moved to by instinct alone.

 **"** Lemme tell ya a bedtime story pumpkin, **"** he muttered loud enough for her to hear, tapping the space where her heel was. She shifted under it, glancing over her shoulder to the hologram. He stared at the wall for a moment before drawing his hands to his lap, staring down at them with a small frown across his lips. **"** There was once an angel, born on a big, crowded planet, surrounded by a shit ton of people who didn't understand a damn thing... about what made her different. Heh. Her mother was so happy to have her, cried like a baby when she first saw her, **"** his hands tightened in his lap, releasing when he straightened his back.

A pit grew in Alice's stomach as she sat up, shifting as she watched Jack bite his lip for a moment. She wasn't sure of the feeling she was filled with. It felt... lonely, almost desperate. It wasn't one she knew well, but it felt familiar.

Jack continued. **"** Her Dad... fuck, he cried a little **,"** he glanced back to her, smirking as he made a gap between his fingers. **"** Just a lil', **"** he brought his eyes back down to his hands. **"** She was so beautiful. So, precious. Hell, she made him wonder how something so tiny and cute could be made from someone like him **,"** he chuckled dryly, shifting to sit more comfortably on the bed. **"** He promised her he'd never let anything bad happen to her. Yet he... **"** His voice dropped, the grip he had on his fingers tightening to the point that if he could feel it, he would probably break them. **"** I dunno where she even is **,"** his voice sounded rough, closing his eyes as he brought his fingers to his eyes. She was starting to get a headache. **"** If she's even here too... if she's alive- no, she's alive **,"** his tone grew stronger, but she could feel the desperation in her veins. **"** She's alive. **"**

 **"** Jack, **"** Alice shifted herself closer to him, reaching her hand up to his shoulders but paused when she realized that she couldn't touch him. Drawing her hand back, she watched the man sigh. The girl wasn't sure how to comfort the man, without physically touching him. She'd never had a daughter before- or a child at all. She didn't know how it felt to lose someone so precious- someone that was _a part_ of you. No idea how long ago it had been since he died, if she was still here or not. Hell, she didn't know he had a daughter till now. Or a wife- or at the very least a girlfriend. He had a family. **"** I'm sure if she's here, she's with her mother. Safe. **"**

He chuckled dryly at her words, shaking his head at her.

 **"** She's dead, pumpkin. I dunno how many years it's been since, but I'm gonna say about fifteen. **"**

"Oh," she frowned, looking down in confusion as this made her wonder how old _he_ was. Thirties, that was her guess for sure. He didn't look so old- and he sure as hell didn't act his age. "I'm sorry."

Seeing her confusion, he smiled before shaking his head.

 **"** I know it's not happy crap like my normal stories- **"**

"No, I'm glad you told me," she forced a small smile for him, watching him chuckle and phase himself to her side, lying on his with his head propped up on his palm. "Really." She followed his movement.

 **"** Don't gimme that bullcrap, babe **,"** he smirked, spotting the blush that had resurfaced from earlier. Jack had already figured out she had a fondness for nicknames more intimate that 'cupcake'. **"** We both know you love hearin' my drunken night tales **,"** the blush grew, as did his smirk.

"No, I don't," she growled, moving back to facing the wall while hologram howled with laughter. Her face flushed. "Asshole."

 **"** That's Handsome Goddamn Asshole to you, sweet cheeks **."**

"UUUGH. Good night."

Jack chuckled, seeing the red growing to her ears. He made himself comfortable by her side, turning to face the ceiling with his arm behind his head. With a quick glance to the girl, he hummed.

"Night, Kiddo."

Sleep seriously couldn't make itself seen fast enough.

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter nine of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 ** _Also, thank you for your reviews:  
HeavenlyCondemned and Alyce DreamEater! Hope are much loved!_**

 ** _Also, poutine looks quite nice o_o I might have to try it one time when I can find someone to trial test it with me! XD_**

 ** _This chapter's question is: If you could have one of the sirens' known powers, who would you choose?_**

 _ **Answer: Angel's. Sure, we dunno all of its powers but it has a lot of cool things it can do. Compared to Lilith's walk and Maya's lock.**_


	10. Birthday shootings

Chapter 10

"Words birds thirds turds. **"** – Any hologram speaking.

 _ **'**_ _Words birds thirds turds._ _ **'**_ \- Any hologram thinking.

* * *

 **April 10** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Monday. 09:01.**

Birthdays were a rare occasion, but always predictable. Occurring on the same day, every single year. Today was Alice's best friends' birthday, but she wasn't entirely sure why she wasn't allowed to plan it this year, the two twins demanding that they were planning their own party, bar, activities and food.

Well, she wasn't the best planner. She easily got dates mixed up, times and places. But of course, this wasn't something she would admit so easily. Not when she had her favourite sniper attached to her back, comfortable climbing shoes on and her trusty camo jacket hugging her tightly.

"How does it feel to be twenty-two then, girls?" Alice looked between the girls with a small grin across her face, watching the twins walking ahead of her glance to one another before back at her. They both smiled, one of innocence, the other of smugness.

""Old.""

"Go to hell," a dry chuckle left the programmer as they tracked along the dirt path they were following through the forest, each girl sporting hiking goggles around their necks. But, they all followed the theme of camo and hiking. A small smile floated onto the face of the programmer, tugging on the sleeve of her jacket before glancing back to the sulking hologram that walked behind her, grumbling to himself about pretty much everything.

 **"** Walking still freaking sucks, **"** he murmured loud enough for her to hear. "Least I don't have'ta breathe," her smile growing as she met his eye. He frowned, turning his head away from her like a child in her opinion. A soft giggle escaped her, turning back to her friends as they were talking about random shit like Judith's fiancé. This subject alone made her feel uncomfortable, knowing it was her brother they were talking about.

"How's it feel joining the single's club again?" Margret teased, wrapping her free arm around her friend's waist till they were skin-to-skin, a sneaky smile across her lips. "Up for that one night stand I suggested in high school?"

"No. Way too early for that," the red-faced brunette gave her friend a soft push, seeing the girl's twin gag and walk ahead with passion. The two laughed at the sight, Jack's eyes drifting between the two women with a confused frown.

"Wait-wait-wait- this chick plays my team?" He questioned, phasing to Alice's other side. He nudged her side with his elbow, grabbing her attention. The golden ringed girl glanced to him momentarily, before they turned back to the road in front of her. She had her prescribed goggles on, seeing as she wouldn't be taking them off till she got home. If they broke, she also had a spare pair of contacts in her backpack. She was actually amazed the people at Hype made them for her. She could only guess they wanted Jack to experience the idea of being shot. Alice carried the food and other necessities, Judith carried the first aid and bullets, while Margret carried the weapons on her back.

 _'Yes. She's been gay for as long as I've known her,'_ with a small nod of her head, she carried on walking with just a single glance to Jack who continued to carry the rear of the group.

 **"** You're shittin's me. **"**

"It's weird, since for as long as I've known you, you've never really been single," Margret added back into the conversation, the programmer's face dropping before shaking her head. "What?"

"I always said I was seeing someone to get the guys off my back," she defended herself, refraining from looking to Jack even though she could feel his stare. "In high school, they were all idiots."

"I agree," Judith jumped into the conversation saying this, her sister nudging closer to her twin, wrapping her arm around her neck.

"Says the chick now officially engaged to a dude nearly four years older than her!"

…

"Please be quiet, Maggie."

It wasn't till the sun got a little higher in the sky, the clock now hitting ten that they finally got to the small camp grounds. Cabins here and there along with a large sign saying 'Delta Force' across the largest stand in the middle. Heading over to it, Margret brought out her phone and showed it to the young adult behind the counter.

"Maggie Bails, party of three. Expert level, present and ready to shoot people. We brought our own guns," she grinned from cheek to cheek, taking her phone back after a second before pulling the three large rifle cases from her back. The man carefully took the weapons from her, handing it to the teen by his side to take back and check them before battle. "We already have our consent forms filled out," she hummed, pulling out the three folded sheets from her pocket.

Eddi, the man behind the counter, took them and gave them a quick look over before tossing them to the side.

"Looks good. The other teams are already here," he mentioned with a jab of his thumb backwards before tugging the front of his cap down to better shield his eyes from the sun. "You guys should already know the way to the E groups- down the hall, take a right, room E Two."

"Gotcha," with a wink, Margret lead the way after retrieving their guns back and throwing them all over her shoulder; being a chef took a lot of strength and effort, being able to pick up her own weight and more. "God, we haven't been here since Ally's birthday."

"I got shot in the bloody spine," she frowned. "Hurt like a bitch," cringing at the repeating memory in her mind while Judith pulled her hood over her head as they got closer to the open garden area. Once inside, Margret ran ahead to their designated picnic table, tossing their guns down with a sigh.

"Sweet Jesus," she sighed, flopping back onto her table, removing her jacket revealing the black tank top she wore underneath. "Augh, the nervous adrenaline is hitting me already," despite saying that, she was grinning like a kid in a candy store, looking around at all the small groups of fours and threes. The young woman was excited about her first victim, pulling her medium sized, square case into her lap with glee. "I love you baby."

Her twin and friend quickly followed after her, plopping down on the bench with a sigh while nursing their poor, sore feet.

"God, I hate walking," The programmer sighed, glancing to Jack who smirked and had pixelized himself into existence right in front of her, sitting on the bench while stretching his arms out.

She wasn't sure why, but she felt like he was mad at her. Alice didn't know why, how or even when it started; she was more confused than anything as it had been going on for the last couple of weeks.

"Amen," Judith sighed, crossing her arms on the picnic table before lying her head down on them. They had another half an hour before the games started, everyone looking either bored, nervous or hyped about this fact.

The female programmer had different things on her mind with the hologram seated right in front of her, his back turned to her.

Seeing his frown as he looked around, it reminded her of how he always frowned at the apartment. For some reason, he really, _really_ didn't like Rhys. Despite the man having a poster of 'Handsome' Jack above his desk.

It was the first time she was seeing the man in colour; truth be told, he looked beyond the expectations she had of him, which was quite low to begin with seeing as she always saw him in the blue holographic form he was always in.

"Earth to Ally?" This was enough to snap Alice out of whatever mental stance she was in, blinking her eyes as the refocused on the girls sitting opposite her with a ham and cheese sandwich outstretched towards her face. With a small smile, she accepted it, taking a bite. "Gotta keep your strength up," Margret smiled past the slightly worried look, both of the twins slowly becoming used to her little dazing out sessions. "You're our secret weapon, after all," she leaned forwards, whispering to the two.

"You two are the only ones here without military training," she scoffed at twins, ignoring the glance back her AI gave her while Judith pulled out her favourite toy from its bag. A long SMG, built for her size and weight. It looked similar to what the company supplied for the normal games played here, but the longer barrel and smaller details made it clear it was either self-made or custom made. The latter being true.

"Yeah but they don't have a badass," she smiled, gabbing a thumb into her chest before pointing at Alice who tugged her gun closer to her back. "Or a sniper like yourself," she murmured the last part softly, seeing the small glare she gave her.

"Not like I had a choice. Both of my brothers are snipers," she smirked lightly, shaking her head as one of the employees came around with a box of light helmets for the players. The teenager bringing them around instantly put the programmer on edge, a small smile on her lips when she accepted the helmet.

"Be sure to protect your breadbox ma'am," the ginger warned, grinning while giving her the quick thumbs up, before carrying on with her mission. That alone made her feel uncomfortable, her hand absentmindedly heading to her port but quickly dismissed the action when her friends started to tug on the light headgear once the goggles were secure.

 **"** Well, that was legitimately creepy, **"** Jack commented, speaking for the first time in a while. **"** Keep an eye on those employees, cupcake, **"** he warned, a small growl escaping him. **"** Those assholes are up to something, **"** with a single glance to him, the groups started to stand up one by one, gathering around the small stage they had near the three entrances to the events. A tall, familiar man stepped up onto it, smiling as he had his own shotgun attached to his back, smirking along the crowd. When his eyes fell onto Alice's group, he paused, chuckling slightly before speaking.

"Well, it's great to see some familiar faces back for more blood and bruises- and for you newbies. Don't worry, you'll be _fine_ ," he smirked, muttering into the microphone. "Maybe."

This was enough to squeeze a couple of chuckles from the crowd. Although, Alice's eyes were firmly trained on the man on top of the small stage.

"I'm Axton and I'll be your C.O for the day," he mentioned to the ginger teen from before, everyone's eyes turning to her as she came bouncing up the stage with her own shotgun on her back. "This little monster will be my hammer of discipline," he joked, "and she'll be making sure none of you get too fucked up today. Right, midg?"

"Yes, mister, unparalleled stud, sir. Gaige reporting for duty," she grinned, high-fiving the man by her side before turning to the rest of the people. "Alright my minions! Today is gonna be fun or you ain't doing it right!" She grinned. "Like, seriously. Get shot at- it's a fuckton of fun."

"Language, Kid," Axton smirked, flicking her cheek before looking to the rest. "Obviously, you guys know the rules but for legal reasons, I gotta repeat 'em," he sighed, moving his hand to ruffle the back of his hair. "Headshots don't count, no point-blank shooting and when you're hit for the fifth time, yell 'OUT'," he demonstrated. "Raise your hand and exit the area on either side of the arena to join the _dead zone_."

"Everything else is allowed," the ginger yelled as he finished. "So, go nuts! Climb a tree. Jump in a lake. Climb a mountain. Try out cannibalism if ya want but- don't. Cause, you know, that stuff is like- _really_ gross-"

"Gaige, kiddo, you're getting off topic," with another flick, the group's C.O continued. "The blackboard will be updated with the first match. Come back in five minutes then line up at your assigned gates," he smirked, dropping down from the stage by extending his leg to take a step then dropping off the four-foot-high platform.

"Have fun! Don't die! See ya at the end of the first match," Gaige waved as she exited the stage in a similar fashion, the small teams of three or four looking to one another before dispersing to their tables or to wait by the blackboard. Alice's group stood there for a moment, exchanging looks before turning to head back to their table. The sniper of the group paused when she felt a hand on her shoulder, turning to see the retired soldier smiling and chuckling.

"Nice specs."

"Thanks. They let me see," she replied, turning her body to the familiar man as he brought his hand to his neck. "Nice to see you again."

"Likewise. Likewise," he nodded nonchalantly, glancing back to the ginger who threw him a pair of thumbs ups. He rolled his eyes at the gesture, looking back to the girl in front of him. "I didn't take you for the guns type of girl."

"Oh. But, you've only known me for like, five minutes? I could be into all sorts of stuff," She raised a brow at him, seeing his brain physically start thinking of a reply. Maybe it was Jack's influence, but watching people panic while thinking was enjoyable to watch.

"Well, based on your appearance- I just-"

"I was coming home from work," she chuckled slightly at his frown, taking a guess that being tongue-tied by a woman wasn't something he was familiar with. She personally, loved the sight. "Well, Axton, it was nice seeing you," she turned to quickly follow after her friends, but he added.

"Are you free after this?"

She stopped mid-step, blinking in confusion as she turned back to him. The programmer was a little confused where that had come from.

Before Jack could jump in, she answered. "No, I'm not, sorry," she glanced over to her friends who were intently watching the conversation. "It's their birthday so I'll be spending the next twenty hours with them."

"Oh," he blinked, moving to grab his phone from his pocket. "Lemme grab your number then. We can still get that drink later," he winked, playfully which only seemed to fill her with anxiety. Hell, she wasn't sure why it did but when Jack felt it, her stomach dropped when his emotions were thrown into the equation.

"Sorry- I didn't bring my pho-"

"I got it," Margret jumped in, quite literally between the two of them while offering her phone to the man. The former soldier was a little bit confused by the offer but smirked nonetheless seeing what was going on. Alice glared at her though. "Thank you! See ya later, sir," with a short wink, the excited twin led her favourite nerd away till they were a safe distant away at their table.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with me? What's wrong with you- he's hot and asking you out for a simple _drink_ ," she growled back, glancing back to the man before back at her. "What's wrong with just getting his number?"

"My boyfriend died five months ago, I wasn't even allowed to go to his funeral and you expect me to just jump back into the _game_? I'm not comfortable with the idea of just getting a drink with him," Alice stared- no, glared at her friend, slamming her hand down on the bench, startling the taller twin who was just listening to the conversation now. "What's wrong with you?"

"It's been five months. _Five. Months_ ," the fiery twin bit back, glaring at how stubborn her friend was being. "Just get to know him- go talk to other people besides us. Make a friend," she mentioned to her twin behind her, said girl looking more than a little awkward by the situation. "You're seriously becoming a _loner_."

"Team Blue versus Team Yellow! Please make your way to Gate two!" Axton yelled across the room, the three girls stiffening when their colour was called. Judith looked between the two girls unsurely till Alice walked past her twin, removing her sniper from its casing and throwing it over her shoulder, not even looking at either of them as she headed in the direction of the gates.

"You went a little too far," the younger twin frowned, passing her sister with the SMG in hand. The older twin sighed, pushing her two pistols into their holders on her thigh before following after her sister and best friend.

"I know, I know. Don't remind me."

* * *

 **April 10** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Monday. 14:10.**

By the start of the third round, two thirds of the Yellow team had been shot at least five times. For the easily missed sniper, she had yet to be hit once. Even with Jack's tales, tricks and gossiping; she hadn't lost focus once on protecting her friends and seeking out the enemy. But, when each game was over an hour long, injuries were bound to happen no matter how hard you kept your focus. And for Alice, her friends were the ones to suffer.

"I fucking haaaate you," the annoyed Margret barked at the programmer, throwing a random stick she had picked up in the arena. She easily dodged to the side, raising a brow at her misplaced anger. "How the hell haven't you gotten shot?!"

"It's called sniping. Where you shoot at people from a nice, _saaafe_ distance," she smirked, earning another growl as they finally sat down at their bench, the twins groaning as the newest bruises settled in across their pale, British skin. The man of the group... sort of, made himself apparent by materialising himself opposite his user beside the angry woman who was picking dry paint from her jacket. His partner's eyes fluttering open when she took note of him. _'Before I forgot: Thanks for before.'_

 **"** Heh. It's nothin'. I got your back, kiddo, **"** Jack smirked while making himself comfortable, leaning back against that invisible wall as his eyes surveyed the competition around him, taking note of what teams, they had played and those they had not yet. So far, their team was in third, below two older teams in their late twenties, all consisting of all male veterans. Truthfully, he didn't mind watching her back whenever she got into position, becoming her eyes and ears when she got into the mode. _ **'**_ _I actually miss the feelin' of being shot at,_ _ **'**_ he chuckled at his own thought, glancing back to his user who had placed her head down on the bench since their next round wouldn't be for another half an hour.

The E games, paintball with little limits, was made mainly for retired veterans, trigger-happy people and lovers of the sport. completely different from paintball, seeing as these games gave you sometimes extreme locations to play in, an accident could result in an injury as bad as breaking bones. Almost a year ago, there was two deaths, resulting in the larger hills being removed from all arenas permanently.

Even though the games were quite juvenile, Jack couldn't help but admit he was enjoying himself a little too much. Although no one stayed 'dead' when you shot them, it was still an enjoyable sport. If you classed hunting people and shooting them as a sport. The joy of shooting. Oh, how he missed the feeling.

"You okay there?" Margret poked her older friend across the table, watching her stir and swat away her friend's hand. This was enough to get a chuckle out of everyone at the table as she brought her head up, looking more tired than when they got there. "Wake wakey sleeping beauty."

"Oh, go kill yourself," she grumbled back, yawning before slapping her cheeks in attempts to wake herself up some more before the next round. "What time is it?"

"Half two," Judith grumbled from her part of the table, applying the defogging spray to her goggles to let it dry with just enough time before the next match versus the current champs of the board. None of the three were scared per say, but more anxious as the rumour going around was that one of them had imported a freaking _mini gun_. And it had somehow gone through the checks and passed. **That** , they were afraid of. That, they were **deadly** afraid of. Imagine being shot with that thing.

* * *

 **Monday. 14:59.**

The next round didn't last near as long as they expected, ten minutes in and both Judith and Margret had been shot five times dead centre in the torso, heading to the dead zone which left Alice alone in a tree with a silenced paint sniper. It was terrifying to say the least, knowing they were searching for her and by now, every team knew she was a sniping, but had no idea still where she hid and sniped from.

Her heart was racing knowing as she was being hunted by trained soldiers who took this game a little too seriously. She feared falling from this height more than anything, knowing she'd break a bone upon landing.

Jack was actually a little excited about the position they were in, staring through her eyes whenever she used the scope as well as keeping an eye on the ground. He was half-tempted to go find the enemy and give away their position, but that would ruin the fun of their hunt. At least, the idea of being hunted and killing the hunter was amusing from his point of view.

No one hunted Handsome Jack without getting killed in the process.

 **"** Cupcake, ain't no point getting worked up. You'll just get shot quicker. **"**

 _'You're not helping!'_ She swore back at the hologram leaning his back against her own, practically on top of her as she lied down on the thickest branch of the tree she was occupied in. It wasn't safe, that was for sure. But it guarded a forth of her body from incoming paintball shots. Another forth of her body couldn't be hit since it was facing the sky, so she only had to worry about her sides. _'Help or go away.'_

 **"** Woooow. Someone's a little touchy touchy today, **"** he smirked, seeing the growing twitch in her left eye as she surveyed the area through her scope.

It wasn't for another ten minutes to pass that she spotted the first person in this game. Short, dark tanned skin but the only physical trait she could see was his facial hair. It was the minigunner, making her feel so much better knowing that if she shot him, she's have one less thing to worry about. Jack noticed him moments after she did.

 **"** Hey- hey midg at four o'clock! **"**

"More like five and a half but- sure," she instantly closed her mouth when he directed a glare at her, a small smile resurfacing as she took aim. The programmer had gotten into the habit of using her cybernetic arm to aim, finding it a lot easier to hold still and straight. Sure, it was out of her comfort zone, but it had resulted in a lot more paintballs to the chests.

The shot was perfect, a straight line from herself to the enemy. It felt a little too perfect, truth be told, it felt off.

"Kiddo, what- what the hell are you waiting f-" the hologram was quickly cut off by a bullet through his forehead, just missing the top of her head by the skin of her helmet. The inner shock hit her but was pushed to the side as her eyes darted right to see the sniper of the opposite team aiming straight at her, hanging upside down by a tree branch with a smirk across her face, flicks of blue hair peeking from the bottom of her helmet.

"Nice to finally meet you, Hun," Alice could just make out the wink behind the goggles, her stomach instantly dropping as she slowly stood up from the branch, moving her sniper behind her. Her hand instantly pressed it against the lock, holding it in place.

"Oh. Flipping ultra-cat knockers," the random words slipped her tongue, earning a light chuckle from the other female sniper. Hell, Jack chuckled. It made him laugh even more when she slid down the tree facing away from the sniper, muttering under her breath. "Nope-nope-nope-nope-nope-nope," over and over again as she started sprinting in the opposite direction of where the two were.

Alice knew in her stomach she was screwed. They had tactics. Purposely taking out her friends so they could focus on finding her. When they had a general idea where she was, they used one of themselves as bait to draw her attention away while another snuck up on her. The programmers both knew this, although Jack knew she had to have missed on purpose since she had a clear shot. For what reason? Well, he had many in his mind but none of them stuck out.

What she hadn't expected was for her next step to be down a steep fifty-foot-high hill with a small stream at the bottom of it. The young woman's eyes widened as she bit down hard on her lower lip to stop the involuntary squeak from escaping, tumbling and rolling down. It wasn't even a full minute later till she hit the bottom, head first into the stream. Jack sputtered in her mind, fizzling out.

"Ow..." She murmured as she sat up, reaching up to her lip instantly tasting blood when she finally released it.

Her palm was covered in the crimson liquid, her face screwing up for a moment before spitting a couple of drops into the creek. Her back hurt more than it normally did, almost sure she had given herself a slight concussion but on the bright side; her cybernetics were fine. Rubbing her port, she felt no blood and the headache seemed to be fading.

Biting her lip, she couldn't stop the coming sigh as she reached her hand back readying herself to whack the port hard enough to stir another headache and get her companion back. She needed someone to watch her back, especially in the situation she was in.

One whack and a killer headache later, she could only guess he was back. There was no sputter, spark or warning. Did it work.

…

There was only one way to find out.

"Whooptie-fucking-do," she murmured to herself, hulling herself to her feet before jumping across the stream, pushing back the dizziness she was feeling from hitting her head. Once she was across, the programmer surveyed the area, then the top of the hill. No one was there. She could only hope she had given them the slip. Where was her A.I.?

 **"** Language, cupcake. **"**

Ah. There he was.

"Dude, you say _shit_ and _hell_ all the time."

 **"** The Hero can say whatever the _hell_ he wants, **"** was his only comeback, winking as he stressed out 'hell'. The girl only rolled her eyes, continuing her trudge out of the stream and into the thick forest. Once she found a spot, she yanked her jumpsuit down to remove her jumper, wincing the water out of it; it stunk of dirty water and shit. It wasn't a pleasant combination, she was almost thankful Jack couldn't smell it or else she'd never hear the end of it.

"Lord almighty, I _love_ my life," she muttered sarcastically as the man inside her head phased himself beside her, walking by her side as she tugged the damp piece of clothing back on. It didn't help the stink, but it felt a lot better. "Fucking brilliant."

 **"** Cupcake- **"**

"I get it I get it- language," Alice couldn't help but sigh knowing the man was so damn easily angered and irritated when it came to people talking back to him. Maybe he was an important CEO when he was alive. He had the attitude of one. She sighed, turning to look at the hologram who stopped when she did. "Jack, look-"

Before she could say another word, the hologram's eyes widened and instantly reached out, grabbing her wrist and yanking her forward. **"** Move! **"** He yelled, it just hitting him that he made her physically move so suddenly. A sharp yelp escaped her when her shoulder skimmed a tree as electricity ran up her arm and along her spine. It was the first time he had given her such a violent shock, her muscles spasmed and went in the direction he 'pulled' her.

Her hands hit the bark of the tree hard, scrapping against her smooth skin, small trickles of blood appearing on her palms.

She tried to yell at him for his action, turning to face him and not the tree, opening her mouth but he covered it while pulling his blue body against her, putting his other forefinger against his own lips to signal her to shut up.

"Where did she go?" This was a new voice. It had a heavy accent laced it, Alice could tell it was European, maybe Spanish. It sounded like the guy with the minigun, from what she could remember of him. There were two guys, the short and stumpy one from before while the other was tall and thin. She hadn't spotted him till now. Both had thick accents.

"How should _I_ know?"

"I dunno, Amigo. Maya, it was your job to keep an eye on her-"

"-She made me laugh, okay! Jeez, sorry," three voices in total, Jack's eyes seemed to narrow when the man mentioned the name 'Maya'. Did he recognise the name or the voice? His user couldn't tell. "It's not like she could have gotten far anyway."

"The fact she saw our trap gives enough of us away," the familiar voice spoke, moving past her location with two footsteps following. "We don't need Lilith yelling at us later for not questioning her," he murmured just loud enough for Alice to catch, her eyes widening.

There was a pause in the silence, Jack keeping his blue hand across her mouth while watching the three start heading away from her slowly.

"This weather sucks for tracking."

"It's England," the lady chuckled, tossing her pistol back down into her belt. "There's always a twenty percent chance of rain. I quite like it here."

The voices drifted further and further away every second, Jack's eyes following them till they split off into three directions. The young programmer's heart was racing as she kept her eyes closed, her nerves shaking as the static around her lips slowly drifted away.

 **"** Pumpkin. You gotta listen to me, got it? **"** Jack spoke slowly but with a stern tone. Her heart sped up as reopened her eyes, seeing the abnormally serious expression on his face as he kept his finger near his lips, signalling her not to speak, but listen. **'** _We have to go. Now._ _ **'**_

 _'Jack, I'm scared,'_ her tone sounded more unsure than afraid, glancing in the direction the three walked off in. The A.I. followed her gaze, his lips pressing into a thin line as he pulled his hand away from them.

 _'_ _I'm not pissin' myself laughing' with the shit-uation either, Kiddo. But, we have to go_ _ **,'**_ his smooth voice glitched with his pun when he watched her bob her head, absentmindedly biting on the scar in the corner of her mouth. It took a moment for her to regain her cool, looking back to Jack who simply smirked.

This was enough to calm her nerves enough for her legs to move, slowly walking along the shadows in the opposite direction they had gone in. Locked fists by her sides, one rubbing the pistol against her outer thigh but that was mainly to keep her mind sharp and restrain from panicking.

 _'We need to get to a gate- any gate and say I give up,'_ the former CEO didn't snap at her plan, something he would have done if she was any employee of his being sent down to fight. But what they were fighting for was different. They were fighting to protect. Protect **him**. And if he was removed, that would be the end of him. And most likely her as well. _'I give up. I quit. I'm actually looking forward to giving up, for once.'_

 _ **'**_ _There's givin' up and not tryin' shit. Then there's giving up to protect something,_ _ **'**_ Jack rubbed his neck for a second, moving his arms back to his side after a second but spared her a glance. _ **'**_ _Three against one, well-_ _ **'**_ he smirked. _**'**_ _You'll die._ _ **'**_

 _'Yeah, well, no duh,'_ she rolled her eyes, biting her lip as she got to the bottom of the hill after nearly ten minutes of walking, staring up at in terror as it was high- she could climb it, sure. But it was going to leave her pretty vulnerable when it did.

Jack could feel her hesitation, reading her subconscious thoughts. Looking over his shoulder, he couldn't sense anyone for at least half a mile back. He looked back to the mud-covered girl with a confident grin.

 **"** I gotcha back, baby, **"** he moved his hand to the lower of her back, watching the sparks fly up her spine as she met his gaze. **"** Start climbing **"** seeing her unsure look, he rolled his eyes and gave her a push, more than pleased when her muscled spasmed and she moved with his force. **"** Get your ass in gear and start already. You stupid little code monkey, **"** he frowned, turning away from the woman who practically shoved her middle finger into the back of his head before starting her hike up the hill.

"Fuck you man," she murmured under her breath, frowning at the sight in front of her; it was almost at a ninety-degree angle. Even with her hiking boots, it was a hard track up. The girl was unaware that the hologram had heard her, his eyes traveling up her body as she gripped a rock harder when the slope seemed to get muddier the further she climbed up.

 **"** I wouldn't mind giving you a go, **"** hearing his hum, she stumbled, nearly falling flat on her face in the mud while he chuckled. That was the reaction he was waiting for, **just perfect**. _ **'**_ _God damn, she's so easy to fluster_ _,_ _ **'**_ he grinned back at the glare she threw over her shoulder as the man floated beside her, his eyes drifting back to the forest behind the small stream but his lips were close enough for her to hear his murmurs perfectly. **"** Throw you on the bed, rip those nerdy clothes off of ya and show you a reaaaal good time. _Har_ - **"**

"Jack. _Pleeeeaaaase_ ," she glanced back to him, red-faced with a visible shake in her hands; she couldn't concentrate with him disorganising her mind like this. "I'm trying not to fall and break my neck here."

 **"** And? I'm busting a gut watching your widdle cheeks light up like I'm doin' you right n- **"**

"Jaaack," she growled, giving him one last glare before continuing with her task at hand; not falling and alerting the enemy of her position. Getting the hell out of the arena without having her head ripped in two by the guys targeting her. "For the love of God, please _shut up_."

 **"** Cupcake, how 'bout you _shut up_ and learn to take a compliment. Okaaaaay, **"** The older programmer teased but paused mid-sentence, narrowing his eyes at the moving tree in the distance. When birds flew away from the small patch, he dismissed it. Feeling her nervousness change from flustered to worry, he added. **"** It's nothing. Just some shitty birds. **"**

 _'Good. Good,'_ with a shake of her head, Alice continued climbing, cheering when she was nearly at the top. She was minutes away from the top and then, the homestretch. Oh, how glorious that homestretch sounded. It was almost heavenly. "Little... more..."

"Cupcake-"

"What?" She snapped back over her shoulder at his harsh tone. Jack signalled to look up, the young woman only raising a brow as she looked up, her face instantly dropping at the sight of a mask looking down on her, she could make out the slight smile she had before it was removed. Pale blue- almost silver eyes stared back at her, two blue small circle markings under her left eye were eye-catching even though the feeling of _'oh shit'_ was surfacing in her stomach again. "Aw, crap."

"Such a sweet reunion," she smiled, grabbing her nearest hand and picking her up off of the hill without so much flinching at her weight. The programmer squirmed.

"Let me go!" _'Oh- Don't say that!'_ frowning and attempting to kick the woman who simply stared with a smile before-

"Alright. Morty, catch."

Tossing her forward. The height alone had a chance to knock her out, combine that with the rocks in the stream below- her body tensed up as she fell. What she wasn't expecting was for a man to catch her, her body tensed up at the warmth, slowly opening one eye up at the masked man.

She stared, trying to see through the tinted helmet but it was no use. Slowly, the guy placed her down on her feet just as the woman jumped off the hill and landed five-feet from her. Which was creepy of course.

"Sup. You Alice?"

 _'Say no,'_ she thought, frowning as she tugged her mask and goggled on tighter. She glanced to Jack who had phased himself to her side, catching sight of him shaking his head. "No."

 _*BANG*_

"Mother-flying-FUCKER," Alice yelled while dropping to one knee, holding her other thigh which had just been blasted with a paintball at close range. And boy did it hurt. It was a numbing pain after a moment, but the initial shock burned. She glared up at the man, throwing her hand covered in red paint up at him. "What the hell man?!"

"I wouldn't lie to me if I were you, señorita," he warned, raising the gun to her chest and pressing it against her through the padding of her armour. "Bad things happen when you lie to me," she knew he wasn't fucking around, Jack knew it as well- the voice he couldn't Goddamn put a face to knew it too.

"If you know who I am, then why did you even ask?" She frowned, biting back a sarcastic response as she held her leg carefully; she could already feel the raising bruise that was surfacing. And God, it hurt like a bitch. She could see Jack watching in the corner of her eye, she had a feeling he was pissed. The feeling of anger and panic was rushing through her veins. "Just what do you want from me?"

"Answers," the lady behind her answered, placing one hand on the pistol on her hip. "Your program is really annoying to get into."

"London's a big place, full of crime and alleyways," the man in front of her continued, placing the pistol back in its holster. "A place like this is a lot easier to talk in. Lot safer for us both," he murmured, loud enough for her, of course.

 **"** Don't tell 'em anything. Repeat what I say- wait. Better idea! Lemme take over, **"** Jack whispered in her ear, becoming very close to her. It was enough to calm her nerves and keep the straight face she always supported. **"** You there, pumpkin? Don't worry, I know what I'm doin'. I've done this before! I'll protect you. **"**

 _'Wait what? Take over? You've done this before? When? How?'_ She questioned, glancing to Jack who was holding a serious expression, something she rarely saw. She hesitated, taking a deep breath trying to make it less noticeable.

She had no idea how to deal with people pointing a gun at her. Well, it was a paintball gun, but death sounded more tempting than a torture session. From what Jack had told her, he had some experience dealing with these sorts of people. So... it would be okay. Right?

 _'Okay. Okay, sure. Yes.'_

 **"** Good, **"** he breathed in, standing by her side watching her expression dip when the gunner in front became quiet. Alice felt light, feint almost. Then he whispered softly in her ear, she could practically feel the heat of his breath against her skin. **"** Now, relax. Daddy's gonna take the reins for a while. **"**

The world spun around her, falling forward. Her only thoughts were-

 _'Great. I'm gonna die. There goes my holiday plans.'_

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter ten of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 _ **Also, thank you for your reviews:  
HeavenlyCondemned,** **AgentOhioS118, Ozuhananas**_

 ** _This chapter's question is: Which game would you want to be involved in- like, a vault hunter in?_**

 _ **Answer: Pre-sequel. I get to snuggle wuggle the cutie called Timothy! :D**_


	11. Night terrors

Chapter 11

 **April 11** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Tuesday. 10:09.**

"Words birds thirds turds. **"** – Any hologram speaking.

 _ **'**_ _Words birds thirds turds._ _ **'**_ \- Any hologram thinking.

* * *

Waking up for the first time from a long, deep sleep leaves you a little disorientated and confused. The same could be said for someone regaining the control of their body... or someone else's. The feeling of motion, breathing, even feeling. When it came to falling asleep, you don't even notice you've done it till you wake up.

But dreams. You can't even tell you're dreaming.

 _"I'm sorry,"_ she whispered into the small ball in her hands, tears running down her face. Her eyes were drawn to the small, delicate orb in her arms. It was warm. It had a heartbeat. It whispered sweet words in her ear, in a familiar soothing voice. _"Daniel..."_

 _"I'm here, Angel,"_ despite seeing the light, lulling voice of her lover, her heart was filled with guilt, pain and sorrow. " _I'm right here. Not leaving you anytime soon."_

Her eyes started to fill up in tears again as she stared down at the sphere, watching it omit the sweetest light; like a star. But she could faintly make out the outline of his face, smiling. His dark hair, hazel eyes, always present smile or smirk.

 _"Promise?"_ She whimpered, reaching up to rub the tears away but stopped when she felt no hand on her face. Her eyes darted to her hand – lack of hand, before back to the orb, watching it crack down the middle. Now she could see the lights of an incoming truck coming towards her. Her mixed eyes widened at the sight, her voice stuck in her throat.

 _"No. I'm dead."_

It shattered.

She screamed.

The young woman woke with a jolt, panting lightly at the nightmare. It wasn't new. She hadn't been able to have a decent night's sleep in weeks without a nightmare waking her up. They all contained the same thing. Memories of the accident. Of Daniel. Of waking up and finding out he was... dead.

"Ugh, that's smart," Alice spoke, sitting up slowly from where she was laid out, reaching to hold her head but paused when she felt the cool steel of her port. Oh, right. Looking around, she recognized the white walls and strong smell of sterilizer of a hospital. It had hit her where she was.

Pulling her hand away, she noticed the dark bruising around her wrist as well as circular spots spotted here and there. The young woman couldn't recall what had happened to cause this damage to her body. It took her a moment to proper survey her room, spotting a card and vase for flowers to her right. There was no one else in her room, automatically assuming that Hype knew she was here and had arrange this for their next meeting.

The young programmer sighed at the idea of seeing Hugo again, shifting to lie on her side away from the open curtains.

 **"** Mornin' cupcake, **"** she heard the hologram's voice to her left, unaware that he was sitting in the chair beside her bed with arms behind his head and feet up on her lap. **"** Ain't you a pretty picture, **"** he teased, chuckling at the small groan that escaped her as she flopped back into the stiff bed below. **"** How ya feeling? **"**

"Like absolute crap," she whined, growling when she realized that her arm wasn't attached to her and there were no glasses for her to use. "What happened?"

The CEO smirked, shaking his hand in a gesture of 'nothing really' before continuing. **"** Had a talk, got shot a few times, cracked a joke or two, nothin' too big, babe. **"**

"I got SHOT?" She frowned in his direction, already imagining his expression. "Jack-"

 **"** Hey, _I_ didn't shoot you, **"** he growled as he sat up, his lips pulled into a straight line. **"** Thank those bastards **,"** he paused for a moment, frowning. **"** Ugh, this is so frustrating. I know that I _know_ one of those bastards. The accent, the voice, the body structure- it's all there but I ain't getting any names! **"**

Alice could just imagine Jack throwing one of his usual tempter tapetums, rolling her eyes as he was indeed throwing his arms up into the air with a deep snarl. Well, it was a little one. But it was one, nonetheless.

"A mental block," she yawned lightly, covering her eyes with her arm. Almost her entire body ached.

 **"** Yeah, and, I friggin' hate it! **"**

There was a small moment of silence before she continued.

"Jack. Please tell me what happened," her voice was slow and quiet, fearful of what happened to her while she was blackout in the back of her mind. It took her a moment to process that her mind was gone while her body was still moving. It felt like a deep sleep.

Jack watched the young woman for a moment, already seeing the confliction in her face while he adjusted himself to sit up straighter.

 **"** Sure, pumpkin. Gimme a minute to think- just lemme say, a _lot_ happened. **"**

* * *

 **April 10** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Monday. 15:36.**

"Ugh, my head," came a loud grunt from Alice's mouth, even though the accent was different. It was more American, so to speak. "Now _this_ is a hangover..."

Only one of the three recognized the tone of voice immediately, feeling the bubbling anger filling his stomach as he took a step forward towards the fallen woman, staring down at her as she stood up slowly, almost like she was taking her first steps in years. Like watching a baby deer take its first steps as she stumbled at first.

"You didn't even hit your head," The tallest of the group growled lightly, moving his hand to her shoulder and holding her up by the fabric. Her blue eyes drifted to the man in front of her, narrowing them before giving a small confident smile. He was almost positive he knew who he was talking to, but he couldn't let his teammates know yet in case they reacted. "You ready for the first question," he questioned, releasing her shirt when she steadied herself.

The young woman moved her hand to her hip, moving her weight to it as she stood. It looked natural, the leader could tell there was a shift mentally.

"Depends on the question," she spoke, the accent more apparent than the AI wanted. "If I say too much, my head," her finger probed at the port on her temple, assuming the man was following her. "Goes PBBLT," Jack wondered how she looked blowing a raspberry, never seeing it before.

Maya stared for a moment before looking between her two teammates.

"Is she for real?"

Truthfully, it wouldn't have shocked any of them that Hype would be capable of doing that. They were merciless, cruel and selfish. They were the type that would rather destroy the information than let it fall into the hands of their enemy.

"I wouldn't be shocked if Hyperion implanted explosives in their own men," the leader spoke, glaring at the woman whose own expression didn't drop from the calm, almost observant smile she held. It was unnerving to the three; especially when her mannerism didn't so much flinch at his words. Either she already knew of what they were capable of- which they highly doubted, or this was someone who knew precisely what they were able to do- most likely a higher up. "I only have one question. Which A.I is in your head," the question was blunt, leaving no room to shift around the question.

Jack paused at this. He was wondering if he should dodge around the question, or give a random made-up name since he was _Handsome Goddamn Jack_. Everyone knew his name, and these bandits no doubt knew what he could do- **what he had done**. He was sure that if he so much as mentioned his name, he- she, would be put to an end.

When her smile finally dipped, she answered. "Rhys. Dunno his last name. Code-monkey like... myself."

The three spared a glance, not knowing the name so they just assumed she was either lying, or it was a low-level employee they were testing her with. They weren't entirely sure how far into the project they were at. Their leader had predicted trial testing, which this woman could be a part of.

Until they had better mean of interrogations, or transportation for it. They couldn't do much, knowing there was people waiting for her once the match ended, either with her being shot up- or the two-hour timing ending.

At least, for them, this meeting wasn't completely going to waste.

"That'll do... for now," the taller man spoke, nodding his head to the two. Maya moved around to behind her, capturing her arms with hers and tightening the grip.

"-What the hell-"

"Knock her out."

"Wait-wait-wait-wait-don't-"

 _*BANG*_

"Son-of-a-!"

 _*BANG*_

 _*BANG*_

 _*BANG*_

 _*BANG*_

"We'll be seeing you soon, senorita. Don't forget us."

 **April 11** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Tuesday. 10:23.**

"You told them you were Rhys," she questioned with annoyance lacing her words, pinching her sore hand to the bridge of her nose. "Then you got me shot the hell up."

 **"** Yeuuuuuuup, **"** the hologram chuckled while watching her lean back further into her bed in pain. The man had to admit it hurt like a bitch, not something he wanted a repeat of. At least it wasn't as painful being shot by a real bullet. He'd take one made of paint any day. **"** Thought they'd ask me more questions- **"** he shrugged. **"** But who cares what those shits were doing, **"** he grinned, moving closer to the woman who couldn't even see him as he scooted close to her. **"** How you feelin' cupcake? Does it hurt? Of course, it does- but do you think you can walk? You've got work tomorrow and I'm sick of that place. Think you can play dead till the weekend? **"**

Oh, how much she wanted to punch him already.

"I suddenly wish I was knocked out still..."

 **"** Er- wow. Rude. Considering the BS I went through to help you, the least you could do is say 'thanks', **"** the former CEO wasn't completely serious with his words, knowing she was in so much pain because of _his_ actions. In the back of his mind, he was sure he could have taken a different route to avoid getting her so injured. But 'what if's sucked and they weren't for him. He wasn't going to feel a lick of guilt over not being able to protect her- there was no point. He tried, failed, there was only moving forwards now.

"Thanks for not getting me killed," she murmured under her breath, sighing as she curled herself into a small ball on her side facing him.

He grinned. **"** No problem, kiddo. **"**

The CEO couldn't help but watch the girl for a moment more before moving to stick his head out the door in search of whoever was coming to question her. Whatever alarm went off when her conscious came back was surely heard. Jack was just hoping it wasn't that sonofabitch from the beginning. Hugo. He grinded his nerves, almost as much as Rhys. He wasn't entirely sure why that idiotic programmer pissed him off so much. Maybe because the nerd reminded him a little bit of how he was when he was his age. Maybe. Probably not. He didn't really care.

Then he saw something he really, really didn't want to see.

After a moment, Jack pulled his head back through the door and stomped his feet over to the bed, glaring before pointing to the window.

 **"** Jump out the window. NOW, **"** he ordered, reaching to grab her wrist which she quickly moved it away recalling the bruising she had on her other one as a result of him doing the same before. She could feel it.

"What are you talking about?" Her eyes darted to the door as footsteps could be heard just stopping outside of it. The programmer stared in confusion, looking between the two as it opened. It was an odd sight to say the least. There were her friends, and Simon, said man holding a small yellow and blue hydrangea bouquet. It was an odd sight, and the expression Jack pulled was less than satisfied with him and the flowers. "… Are you guys in the right room?"

"Of course," Margret smirked at the question, tossing down a small bouquet of white roses onto the bed. Judith only rolled her eyes before accepting Simon's flowers and combining them both in order to fit them in the empty vase by her side. "So. Why didn't you tell us you already had a boyfriend?"

"He's not my boyfriend!" "I'm not her boyfriend."

The two replies simultaneously, frowning in the shorter twin's direction as she plopped herself down in the spare seat beside the programmer. The two spared one another a glance while Jack growled and leaned himself against the wall beside her. Something, of course, the woman couldn't see.

"Suuuuuure."

"Did either of you bring my glasses?" Both twins looked between each other, one with a look of shock, the other looking unaffected.

""No(pe).""

With this, the woman sighed before glancing to Simon who was shuffling through his shoulder bag for something. She smiled lightly, feeling more comfortable around this man than Hugo, Walker or Kaiya.

"Thank you for the flowers."

"Noah chose them. He's surprised you're alive," he replied, pulling out a small blue case before handing it to her. Alice paused before opening it, a sigh of relief escaping her as she recognized the blue ringed contacts. "Walker handed me those before I left this morning."

"Yeah," with a nod, she started on putting the thin pieces on, both of the twins looking away while Simon looked unaffected by the sight. "What happened to my arm," she questioned, blinking as she got the first one in before looking around. Like she suspected, it wasn't in the room.

"In repairs. You must have hit the _floor_ hard. Disconnected a few wires," he yawned slightly, raising his hand to cover his mouth. Margret and Judith looked between each other before back to Alice, just as she had finished putting the final contact in.

"I did. It hurt," she played along, glancing around the room once before till she landed on Jack. She stared for a moment, he stared back before she broke the connection and turned back to the normal people. "What happened after I got knocked out?"

"The other team found you and brought you back," Judith pipped up, smiling softly as she sat on her other side, leaving Simon to stand at the end of her bed. Tugging at the collar of her white jumper, she frowned. "They said you were at the bottom of the hill in the water when they spotted you. Why didn't you run to the exit if you got shot so many times?"

 _'… what story have they told the others?'_

"Guess I didn't notice I was shot," she shrugged her shoulders, trying to pull off the nonchalant tone. "I'm fine. Really. Pretty sore though."

"No doubt! You got shot like twelve times," Margret giggled from her other side, prodding her in the neck where a light bruise had formed.

 _"We'll be seeing you soon, senorita."_

Alice flinched away from her, smacking her hand with hers. "Ouch!"

"Don't touch me!"

It was a sudden rush of emotions. She felt uncertain. Betrayed, almost. Scared, for sure. Unsure was another. But the young programmer felt abandoned by her friends. It was supposed to be a fun day out and she ended up meeting the people that were targeting her. A voice echoed in her mind, shaking her core.

 _"Don't forget us."_

Feeling the sudden change, Jack pushed himself off of the wall fainting hearing what was ringing in the back of her mind. Betrayal towards her friends, who were supposed to have her back. Hurt by the one man she thought she could trust, who said he would protect her. Her own heart monitor was starting to suddenly speed up as well.

 **"** Kid- calm down- **"** "Alice- I'm-"

"Go away," pulling her hands to her face, Alice pulled her knees to her chest in attempts to hide from everything around her. Margret didn't know how to react to her best friend's broken reaction, reaching out but stopped when Simon grabbed her hand. The young chef's instant response was a glare and pull her hand back, seeing his serious expression she didn't say a word.

"I'd like a word with her," the tall man whispered to the two, ushering them out of the room muttering to visit later. Once the twins were out of the room, the professor closed the door quietly behind him, watching the young woman curl up tighter in her bed.

Unknown to him, Jack was trying to grab her attention before he could. The former CEO resisted the urge to reach out and touch her, seeing the results of his last attempt still on her wrist. It looked like her _partner_ had abused her- and if you didn't know she had gone paintball. It would have been everyone's first thoughts. The sick feeling he had in his stomach when he knew those were the result of him... he recalled having it before, a long time ago. A memory to look back at later.

 **"** Cupcake. C'mon now. Look at me, **"** he kept his voice calm despite the frustration he was filled with; she wasn't listening to him, it was almost like he wasn't there. When Simon stepped closer, he felt an urgency to make her at least acknowledge him. **"** Ally. Ally baby, c'mon- look at me. I'm right here, baby I- **"**

"Get away from me, Jack," she murmured, moving her hands to her ears in an attempt to block him out. It didn't work, seeing as his voice was radiating from inside her mind and not her ears. The A.I. froze at her words, the underlining anger surfacing with a mixture of... shock? Hurt? nausea? Jack couldn't count the emotions he was feeling all at once.

He wasn't sure why responded in the way he did, right now.

 **"** Well cupcake, that's not possible. You're stuck with me till either I'm removed or you're dead **,"** his voice bounced around in her head, watching the small structure of the woman in front of him tremble and curl up tighter into the ball she had made of herself.

"No..." She cried, shivering as she finally opened her eyes and glanced up, connecting with Simon's through Jack. Seeing the man, she sniffled. "Please."

She paused, feeling the tears filling her eyes as the man stepped closer, mouth shut.

"Please get him out of me."

Her words stopped the two men in their tracks, both wide eyes at her words. Jack couldn't speak, his mouth opening but no words found their ways out. Simon stood and stared for a moment more before heading for the door, pulling his phone out.

"I need to make a phone call."

This left the two alone in her room, the droplets finally falling from her eyes now. She reached up and rubbed them away with her only hand, wincing at the bruises that lined her wrist and forearm. It hurt more than she thought to move, Jack was sure it hurt more than the nerves were recovering.

He finally found his voice as he stood by her bedside, keeping his fists clenched by his sides as he calmed himself.

 **"** Alice... I'm- **"**

"Please, Jack," the cold words trembled from her lips, looking up to him with red eyes from the number of tears running down her face. She forced the smallest smile onto her face, looking down to her lap where she clenched her hand tighter which made her knuckles turn white. "I'm sorry. I'm... my limit..."

If he had a heart, it would have dropped.

 **"** … What... are you saying? **"**

There was a pause.

"I don't think I can do this anymore."

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter eleven of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 _ **Also, thank you for your reviews:  
HeavenlyCondemned,** **AgentOhioS118, Ozuhananas**_

 ** _This chapter's question is: Which game would you want to be involved in- like, a vault hunter in?_**

 _ **Answer: Pre-sequel. I get to snuggle wuggle the cutie called Timothy! :D**_


	12. Medication

Chapter 11.5

"Words birds thirds turds. **"** – Any hologram speaking.

 _ **'**_ _Words birds thirds turds._ _ **'**_ \- Any hologram thinking.

* * *

 **April 25** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Tuesday. 18:10.**

No one liked being told there was something wrong with them. Or what they were doing was wrong. What they believed in or what they said was wrong. It was an automatic response to deny when someone said you needed help and you believed you were fine.

Alice, like most people, was one of those people who did not like agreeing they were wrong, or that she needed help in something she believed was fine.

Her own mind. Saying her own mind was an endangerment to herself.

 _Bullshit._

Is what she called it of course.

PTSD _(Post-traumatic stress disorder)_ and moderately severe depression. Not a nice combination she had been told and they were currently discussing what pills for her to take as phycology was something they'd like to avoid because of the program she was in. And truthfully, the idea of a person analysing her already messed up mind was scary enough if you didn't throw him the crazy A.I. she had hiding in the back of her mind.

There were a few things about the situation that concerned her. For one, Walker had been called to the Hype Hospital wing as they had been keeping back of observation and they made the conclusion because he had asked them to look into her mentality. It was something he was expecting, almost looking for. That alone made her question what else they were looking for in her.

Maybe she was just being paranoid. That wouldn't shock her seeing from her background of army candidates. It practically ran through their blood to be warily of others and to fight against the waves for something or someone they believed in.

"One of these every day- in the morning as they can irritate your sleep pattern," watching the man write 'fluoxetine' on a prescription sheet before continuing. "Zopiclone three-point-five mg, one hour before bed to help induce a wakeless night sleep. The reason we're using three-point-five is because mixed it's with Fluoxetine, it strengths the effect of Zopiclone. Making it just as strong as the seven-point-one."

 **"** Drugs, drugs, drugs and more drugs, **"** Jack seemed more irritable in her body, but he gave emotionless responses whenever she spoke to him. The User could only guess he was in shock towards the news. At first, he didn't believe it till she was given a psychiatric examination. There were signs he had seen, but he didn't connect the dots between them all. Especially with how little she wanted to speak with others around her.

By the end of the rant, Alice had three different pills to take daily at different times, inducing a groan of her own as she got home and planted her face as far into the settee as it would go.

When the settee bounced slightly, she glanced up to see Rhys knelt down by her side with a hand on her shoulder. She stared back at him blankly before adjusting herself back into the loveseats, almost hoping to suffocate herself in it. "Rhys. Please go away."

"I'm sorry. But, I can't do that," he smiled slightly, rubbing her back gently in hopes to sooth her nerves. He stopped when he realized the stiffness wasn't fading but instead increasing. The tall man drew his hand away, then she started to relax. "So... what stuff did they give you?"

"Antidepressants and sleeping pills," she grunted under the weight of herself, her lungs already started to hurt from the lack of oxygen getting to them. "Take both of the antidepressants in the morning and the sleeping pill at night obviously."

"For your... nightmares?" He hesitantly asked, watching the shorter girl nod into the cushion below her. After a moment, she yanked her head out of it, breathing a little heavier than she wanted. "Don't kill yourself," He scolded. "Or else you'll take me down with you."

"Joint suicide. Fuuun," she lulled to herself, despite Rhys being able to hear her as clear as rain. He rolled his mixed eyes in reply.

"More like suicide followed by murder."

A dry chuckle escaped her again, humming as she looked back to Rhys with a smile.

"Don't worry. I'll get us both some life insurance before we die. At least our loved ones will get something out of it."

"I don't have a girlfriend, or kids," he grumbled, watching her shrug in agreement. It wasn't like she was looking, and kids weren't on her mind whatsoever. She was turning twenty-three at the end of October, she didn't have a single vision of what she wanted to do now, or in the future. "Just who would I ever give it to?"

"Your friends?" Alice watched the man frown, running a hand back into his slick back hair before looking to the window to the side of them. "… Not in this country?"

"N- I mean- yes. They're not in England," she rose a brow at his sudden change, seeing the smile spread across his lips before standing up and heading to the kitchen. "I'm gonna start on dinner. How's pasta sound?"

"With cheese?" The young woman perked up slightly at the sound of some tasty pasta, sitting up to look back at the man over the half wall into the kitchen. He chuckled watching her sit up, nodding.

"Sure. How about carbonara?"

"Amazing. God, I love you man."

"Haha. Thanks... I think?"

* * *

 **April 25** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Tuesday. 20:01.**

It had been almost half an hour since Alice had taken her sleeping pill and she couldn't feel the effects of it just yet. She was rolling over from side to side, covers pulled up to her cheeks as a small shiver escaped her. It was nearly May, which meant it was the middle of Spring yet it was barely hitting eight degrees at night.

It was cold. It was dark. But by no means was it quiet. It was London, and with a busy street still running with cars below her apartment, it was barely any quieter than it was during the day. At some points, she had actually considered buying ear plugs. But that meant going to a shop and actually having to look for the blasted things.

"I hate this... I hate all of this," the young lady murmured to herself, sniffling for one than one reason. It took her a moment to contain her sneeze, shivering more as she ducked under her covers into the darkness. It took her a moment to realize the mistake she had made. "Freaking... dicking... gah."

Instead, she popped her head back up and headed to the dark living room to grab the blanket from the back of the settee, wrapping it around herself; oh, how she wished she had invested in pyjama bottoms right now. Sometimes a tee shirt or jumper just wasn't enough.

The programmer stood there for a moment before moving to the large window the living room supported, her eyes moving to the landscape in front of her. The many bright lights of the city. The cars below her. The little stars she could see were beautiful.

A crackle drew her attention away from the scene for a second, glancing to her right to find Jack leaned back against the window like herself, his arms crossed across his chest and temple resting against the glass like he was real. His eyes were stuck on the sight as well, his lips drew into a thin line with his high brows pulled together.

She stared for a second more before she turned her eyes back to the bright lights, a soft sigh escaping her. "Hey."

"Hey," he grunted back to her soft murmur, always hearing what she said no matter how quietly she would say it.

There was a long moment of silence between the two, her heart tightening as he made no attempt to start a conversation like he would normally do. Her chest felt heavy and tight, feeling worse whenever she glanced over to him.

"Jack... I'm-"

 **"** Save it. It wasn't your fault, **"** he cut her off with a growl, her hands tightening on her forearms. She bit her bottom lip, glancing back to the world below them.

"But I shouldn't have said all of that," she grumbled under her breath, feeling tears trickling the corners of her eyes. Both feeling and seeing this, Jack shook his head when he turned to face her better, his arms moved to his sides.

 **"** Enough of this shitty crying, kiddo, **"** he sighed, moving closer but stopped when his arms outreached for her. The tremble her body admitted was enough to stop him in his tracks, sighing as he moved to run his right hand through his hair. **"** How's those shitty marks going? **"**

"They're going," she smiled softly, absentmindedly rubbing the wrist he had imprinted with his handprint. It was turning a yellow colour now, starting to fade unlike the other ones which were still a purple-blue. "Slowly. I think..."

Jack nodded his head slowly, his eyes drifting to the opening of the door to the left of the loveseats, spotting the lanky nerd he had grown to dislike more than just a little. The tall man stopped mid-yawn when he spotted the younger programmer standing by the window with hooded eyes, a small grunt escaping her when she noticed him.

"Alice? What are you still doing up," he asked, closing his door behind him to block out the lamp he had lighting up his room. Walking over, he noticed now how hard it was for her to keep her eyes open. "Pills kicking in yet?"

"Uh-huh," she yawned lazily into the back of her palm, looking up to the man tiredly for a moment before stretching. "I just remembered I need to take my contacts out," she cast the man a small smile as he sighed, moving his arm slowly around the nervous girl and helped leading her to the bathroom they shared. "Thanks Rhys," she muttered, glancing back over her shoulder to Jack, who was watching them with a stern glare before glitching out of sight.

"No problem. Really," he smiled as he opened the door, letting the girl in first before pausing at the doorway, instead he leaned against the doorframe. "I would ask if you need help- buuut," he chuckled nervously, recalling how you had to remove contacts.

"Yeah. Could you grab my glasses from my room please?" Alice asked with a small, innocent smile. "They should be on my desk. Black with an orange stripe on each side. You've seen them before."

"Black, orange stripe. Got it," with a small grin, he turned on his heels and started his mission while the brunette turned to stare at her reflection. The dark bags under her eyes were more notable now and she looked pale, sickly. With a mixture of a sigh and yawn, she set out removing the thin pieces of plastic from her eyes, back into their proper home and into their solution of disinfectant.

 **"** How you feeling, cupcake? **"**

The voice echoed in her head. It scared her for a second, but she calmed down instantly realizing it was her favourite A.I.

"Fine. Just really tired," she answered, yawning as she stared into her own reflection with narrowed eyes. She could barely make out her most subtle features. She wasn't overly blind like some people.

Jack was just able to pin a smirk across his well sculptured lips, chuckling dryly as he placed a hand on his hip and leaned into it. **"** Wanna hear a bedtime story, kiddo? **"**

"If I can stay awake..."

 **"** Don't worry. I know one that'll make you _beg_ for more. **"**

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter eleven point five of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 _ **Also, thank you for your reviews:  
HeavenlyCondemned, Ozuhananas and our newest reviewer- Miss A. Winchester! Whooo!**_

 ** _This chapter's question is: If you could show Handsome Jack any song of your choice- which would it be?_**

 _ **Answer: For shits and amazing giggles- Irresistible by Temposhark- you Rhack lovers will get the reference ;)**_


	13. News of travel

Chapter 12

* * *

 **May 7** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Sunday. 21:02.**

Life always takes hidden dips and dives without us knowing. Throwing us back into the loop once it was done messing with whatever part it was screwing up before wrapping it up in a bright, red bow and handing it back to you like a birthday present. Sometimes it was weird, and hit you days, months even years after you started waiting for the gift. It was the waiting that killed you inside.

Rhys had been acting very cautious of Alice since she was diagnosed with PTSD plus Moderately Severe Depression. It wasn't like she was overly scared of the disorder, seeing as her brothers had both gone through it before. Both of them coming out stronger than ever. Everyone in her family had gone through the two at least once. For the PTSD, the woman was just surprised to hear she had it just from the car accident and not having her legs blown off like in the movies.

After a minute, the microwave screeched out its usual high-pitched beeps signalling the food was done. At first, the techy girl was tempted to yell for Rhys to get it since she was already so damn comfortable on her back. But that would mean yelling, and her throat already hurt from taking those large pills. With a grunt, she quickly fetched her bowl of popcorn and Fanta before retreating back to her wonderful movie of _Your Name_. It was a Japanese Animation she loved. Even Judith liked it, and she wasn't one for Animation like her sister and friend was.

After making her little nest on the settee, grabbing Monty _(the Enderman plush)_ along with a few other important necessities in her opinion. Once comfortable with the blanket from the back of the loveseats, the brunette curled up snuggled deep into the dip the settee made.

The movie started without a hitch; no interruptions, no loud noises from outside, no random calls from her friends... nothing.

The young woman pulled her blue fish mug closer to her as the screen flickered for a moment. The comet chunks falling down in the night sky was a beautiful scene. The sun breaking above the clouds always caught her breath- then the sound of a crackle pierced her ear. Her eyes narrowed as she noticed the flicker to her right on the spare seat of the settee.

The young woman had just caught Jack phasing himself into a lying position beside her, head propped up on the arm behind him and legs resting in her lap. She stared for a moment as nervousness filled her stomach, her blue orbs drifting back to the TV.

"Hey," it was the first time she had seen him today.

 **"** Sup, **"** he greeted with a yawn, lazily covering his mouth with his hand before making himself more comfortable by phasing a blanket onto himself- like her own. She couldn't help but smile slightly at the yellow blanket covered in images of his own face, a light chuckle escaping her as she looked back to the TV. It was cute, and the gesture made her smile.

Sensing the mood change, Jack moved his hand to his mouth to cover a soft yawn and smirk. The man could sense her changes in moods more often now that she was on medication. Despite how she looked, she was quite good at hiding emotions from herself until she blew. Making it a little harder for him to see how she felt deep down where even he couldn't reach.

 **"** What? You want it, **"** he questioned, mentioning to the blanket he had made, pretending to tug it closer to himself.

"N-No," she chuckled at his inquiry, a small smile on her lips as she pulled her own closer along with Monty. The hologram only threw a frown towards the plush he found just plain creepy. "I have my own one. Mine is probably softer."

 **"** Pfft- no way, babe. No way, **"** with a shake of his head, Jack threw some of the blanket over his socked feet on her lap. **"** You totes want it. **"**

"No, I really don't," she laughed, trying to push the feet off but paused when her hands went through it; sometimes she did forget she couldn't touch him like that. "I quite like my koi one. It's from Japan," she smiled at the sweet memory of university and the sweet trip she took with Daniel and his two friends to celebrate graduation. Her smile dipped into a frown, Jack instantly felt the difference.

 **"** Fish? You'd rather have a damn fish over my face? **"** He questioned overdramatically, glaring at her for a moment before glancing back to the random movie that was on. "Women," he rolled his eyes, moving to sit up and adjust himself till he was beside her. Jack rested his arms around the back of the loveseats, his long fingers just barely reached each side of it as he sat right in the middle of the two cushions. The young computer engineer shivered when his hand moved to rest beside her head.

The sparks had grown stronger since she last checked. It felt like it was growing in power everyday but the electricity really depended on the emotions going through him at the time. Currently, he was calm. So, she only felt a soft jolt at first before it changed to a warm, numbing feeling against her skin. The girl didn't complain or point it out, but tried her best to relax against him being so close to her.

The clock seemed to tick over the volume of the movie, the tap dripping in the kitchen was barely audible to her but everything in the room seemed louder as her senses peeked whenever the A.I. beside her adjusted. It wasn't fear, that she was sure of. Thanks to some consoling, she was slowly getting used to the feeling of fear when it came to adventuring outside. Something she never did alone. Always having at least Rhys or one of the twins by her side.

Jack, though. He gave her nervous butterflies whenever he looked at her or moved beside her. The smaller programmer wasn't sure of what to describe this feeling, only calling it edgy nerves since she blamed the black shadows he had hidden in his past for her uncertainty towards him. She only knew the good stories he told her, but never what made him – him or any troubles he had in his life.

Alice still had no idea how his first wife had died or if he ever remarried or had a girlfriend after her. Or how old his daughter was.

She only knew what he wanted her to know. And that fact kept nudging at her mind every time someone in Hype spoke so highly of him. Especially Rhys. The guy was practically his fanboy- sometime he had denied on several occasions now. She felt like she knew next-to-nothing about the man residing in her head, it hurt thinking that. Someone she wanted to feel safe around, she knew nothing of his ugly past.

 **"** -Elloooooooo? Kiddo, you in there? **"** His voice drew her back into reality, the girl's head momentarily spun as she remembered to breath having been so deep in thought that her mind felt like it had switched off. Covering her mouth, Alice coughed feeling her lungs clench gasping for air. Jack chuckled, pulling his hand away from her face. **"** Did you- just- stop breathing while thinking? Baby, please, I know I'm hot but don't die, okay, **"** he teased, grinning as he held his stomach while laughing heartily at her annoyed expression. **"** Oh, my God. You're so stupid. **"**

"Jack. Shut up," she rolled her eyes at the older man, taking a sip of her dark orange Fanta. It calmed her, and her stupid phycologist recommended taking caffeine-free drinks before going to bed. It would apparently help her sleep. She highly doubted that. "You have weird habits too."

 **"** Pfft. Yeah, sure, whatever you say, babe, **"** he nudged her with his shoulder with a small smirk across his lips. She stared for a moment before shaking her head, recalling a few off the top of her head.

"For starters. You pull weird faces when you're deep in thought. You make weird hand gestures when you're angry and cannot inflict it upon others. Also, you give dirty looks towards random things or people when you don't like your own thoughts-"

 **"** Okay, okaaaaaay! **"** He yelled, flicking her in her forehead knowing she could feel the shock especially when she flinched backwards while laughing. **"** I get it. Shut the hell up already, **"** he growled. With this, the man moved his arm back around her shoulder without her noticing. **"** Smartass sonofataint. **"**

Alice wiped an invisible tear from her eye as she turned back to her movie just as the guy came onto the screen. The bright colours illuminated themselves across the room, making the small living room just as calming as the atmosphere that had been created.

It was moments like these that she was rarely grateful that she had Jack in her mind. Most of the time, she wanted the year and a half to be up so she could leave Hype and never look back. The company's hidden secrets scared the crap out of her. Especially how there was a group that wanted to destroy it, at any means necessary. She was almost certain that if Jack was so highly praised in Hype, the other group may want him dead. Resulting in her own death.

Feeling the incoming dread wash over her, Alice shook her head and leaned towards him with her face in the pillow where his shoulder was. The buzz on her shoulder and neck confirmed it.

Jack could feel the residing anxiety building up inside her, glancing down to the young woman as she was taking deep breaths in order to calm herself like she had been told to. Seeing this, he sighed and hesitantly moved his hand to her back. Caressing something, he couldn't even feel her- it felt awkward to the older man but seeing how it physically stopped the shakes she had was enough for Jack to hold back the complaints.

Grunting, she moved her face in the pillow to better see the man.

His sharp features. Lean but well built, tall but not too tall to make his lean frame look lanky and weak. Long legs and arms, big hands with long slender fingers. He was, for most women, the definition of _Handsome_. As older employees of Hype called him 'Handsome Jack'. Handsome _Goddamn_ Jack, as he referred to himself. It made her wonder why she didn't hold any sexual attraction to him as he was. She only figured it was because he was a hologram. The affection was there, but that was it.

"I know I've said this like eleven times already," the young woman muttered while glancing up to him for a moment, her eyes turning back to the movie while his stopped to watch her. "But... I'm sorry about what I said before."

The former CEO shrugged, puffing out his chest as he adjusted himself like he was getting comfortable.

 **"** It's fine, pumpkin, **"** he teased, giving her a small spark up her spine, watching her shiver and jolt away from the palm against her back. **"** We've already gathered you're weren't in the right state of mind, **"** which was true. Although, she could hardly believe she said those words with such anger and fear towards the man. **"** I mean, of course you weren't. Saying you didn't want to be with me, **"** he chuckled at his own words. **"** You musta hit your head pretty hard rollin' down that hill! **"**

Alice rolled her eyes at his words, moving to get up and grab her phone. This peeked Jack's interest as he leaned over her shoulder to eavesdrop. The girl only scoffed at his actions, fidgeting with her phone as she thought of what to text to her two friends- the thought passed as it buzzed in her hand. Both User and A.I. paused as a text from an unknown number appeared.

Curiously, she opened it.

 _[Sorry if this is late. My phone died & finally got my crap off its corpse :(] _

_[But hru feeling? BTW, it's Axton. Hi.]_

Alice was thankfully she could understand what little text talk the man had written, a dry chuckle escaped her when she got to the end, finding it to be from the former soldier she had met before. Jack's smirk instantly twisted into a frown when he read the name, recalling the CO from the paintball club they had visited last month.

"Almost forgot about him," she smiled as she sat up straighter, thinking of a reply to this late-night message.

 **"** You should've **,"** growled the hologram as he removed his arm round away the back of the settee, crossing them over his chest tighter than before. **"** The asshole did Jackshit when all that crap went down. **"**

"I'm sure he was just in shock. Give him a break," she murmured back, glancing to the man who appeared to be grinding his teeth in irritation. She passed him a small smile, in hopes of calming him down. The A.I. saw and with a simple roll of his eyes, he glanced to the TV. The young woman's eyes turned back to her phone.

 _[I'm fine. A little bit of scarring but otherwise I'm well.]_

She paused as the message was sent, quickly sending another.

 _[How are you?]_

 **"** God, you're so boring, **"** Jack pipped up from behind her, practically leaning over the back of the loveseats and herself as he watched her type. **"** Keep it that way **."**

"Someone sounds a little jealous," she teased while leaning her body forward to ignore the shiver he gave her whenever his mouth was too close to her skin. Jack scowled at the accusation. "No need to get pissed at me texting a guy," she smiled stiffly.

 **"** Pfft- Me? Jealous? What sorta drugs have you been takin', **"** he scoffed, smirking as he pushed himself away from her and towards the window to their left. **"** I don't get jealous- I make _others_ jealous, **"** he threw a grin in her direction, just catching it before her phone buzzed again.

Jack's frown instantly returned.

 _[That's gr8 to hear! Scars on chicks are hot~ ;)]_

The 'jealous' hologram frowned more reading that. The man's words weren't even subtle with the flirting, but Alice didn't fully absorb the meaning behind the words.

 _[I'm gd. Thx 4 asking. Doing anything fun 2nite?]_

The question momentarily made her do a double-take, staring at the question before letting her mixed orbs slowly drift back to the TV playing one of her favourites animations. Her cheeks reddened hearing Jack snicker behind her, already reading her absentminded thoughts.

"Shut up."

 **"** Spending your weekend watching some kiddy crap about supernatural romance. What're you? Four? **"**

"Four-and-a-half. Please get it right," she joked dryly, hearing the man beside her roar with laughter at her reply, being straight up with the man since she had little to no interest acting cool to gain his friendship with how she was feeling.

 _[Watching 'Your Name' with some popcorn, spread out on the settee. And yourself?]_

Alice had no idea how deep she was into this now.

* * *

 **May 7** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Sunday. 21:20.**

The best way to hide from the enemy, is to hide in plain sight. To look innocent, quiet and unnoticeable. Only experienced people knew this. But, only smart people knew _how_ to do it, these Ex-Vault hunters knew how to do this to a tee. Look like normal people living normal lives, they were experts at doing by now.

"SOOO how's the flir-tiiing going, man?" The young mechromancer asked while hanging upside down from the bunkbed she owned, complete with her name stabbed into the wood on the side next to her pillow. The ginger grinned whist kicking her feet nonchalantly, looking down to the soldier under her who was staring up at his phone which he held above his head. With one glance to her, he chuckled dryly.

"Not great, hun. Her files say her boyfriend died months ago and from what I've seen, she ain't interested in another one yet," he explained, typing with one hand before glancing to the young adult who giggled while sitting back up onto her bed.

"Friendzoooooooned... sorry, couldn't help it," Axton shrugged, fiddling with his phone as he sent his text just waiting on a reply now. " So, you're taking the buddy route then?"

"Yeah," he yawned, stretching his limbs out for a moment before moving to sit up minding his head of the wood above him. The Siren reading across from him gave him a quick glimpse at his movement before her eyes returned to her book. "Can't do much else now, right?" It was an actual question, glancing to Maya who didn't give a physical response but spoke when he stood.

"Get her to warm up to you. Heal the wounds and all that crap," she waved her hand in a dismissing manner, the marine chuckling at her lack of caring as he started making his way towards the door. The wooden room was actually quite bare, only small personal items of images beside the beds, belonging to the owner of that area. For Gaige, it was a few pinned up diagrams of robots. For Maya, a self-made shelf for her books. Axton, a small hook for his necklace and a small bare shelf. "Be... romantic. I guess, I dunno."

"I'm a little rusty in that area," the soldier chuckled, grabbing his turret from beside the weapons rack they had, stuffing it into his bag as he headed out. "But I'm sure I can manage one girl," he chimed with a swipe of his phone, texting back.

 _[Bout 2 go 4 a walk. Moon looks awesum 2nite. ;) ]_

* * *

 **May 1** **st** **, 2023.**

 **Monday. 21:20.**

There ain't no rest for the wicked. An overused but right line to describe people in general. Seeing as the human species has adapted to kill one another to survive, even if there is no need to. Call it a malfunctioned gene if you must. But from where the Vault Hunters were from, everything _was_ trying to kill them. So, in a way, they weren't as wicked as the rest.

"You're alive! I'm so happy!" For the Gala, casual formal wear was the norm for the users. There wasn't a need for first impressions anymore, nor were they trying to impress anyone anymore. for the young Noah, he was supporting a white dress shirt and black pants from his home-school lesson he had earlier in the day, not wanting to change into something less comfortable. "Simon is always telling me lies so I didn't believe him when he said you were fine!"

"I do not lie. I just simply don't tell the full truth," the Asian explained while supporting a red dress shirt, black vest and pants. Glancing to the child and woman for a moment, he shook his head then looked back to his glass of wine in hand. "I said she was recovering well. That is all."

"You never tell me the truth," the young boy murmured into the programmer's ribs, pouting while looking up to her with his big brown doe eyes. With a small smile, she petted his messy head of hair before leading him over to the table the others were seated at.

 **"** Oh look! Those assholes are running unfashionably late, yet again, **"** Jack murmured under his breath for Alice, the woman sparing him a glance as she sat down at her seat as Noah crawled under the table to his. "If they were my employees I woulda airlocked them on their first day. Maybe worse, depending on the mood I'm in, **"** the young woman paused in thought for a moment, staring at him beside her before shaking her head; his way of speaking was so weird sometimes.

It wasn't for another half an hour before Kaiya entered the room solo with her hair looking like she had walked through a one-hundred mph storm. The woman only glared when Noah started giggling down the table at her. Alice's hologram couldn't stop his childish snickers as she flattened out her hair. The dark-skinned princess took her seat with a glare; it was like she could tell Jack was giggling at her in his invisible form.

"Before any of you ask, I'm fine-"

 _ **"**_ _-We don't care, Princess-_ _ **"**_

"-Walker won't be attending so let's get to it, shall we," she smiled as she threw herself down in her chair. With a simple click of a button, the little golden chip popping up from the space in front of their seats. Everyone inserted theirs without hesitation, their AIs popping to their sides already in their seats. The man seated beside the young programmer had shifted his feet onto the table.

Alice shivered feeling the unwelcomed shiver that came with the insertion, glancing to her partner as he flickered for a second before solidifying into a clearer copy of himself. A smile tugged its way onto Kai's face as every hologram was seated beside their assigned owners, glancing to the large doors as they opened and five men stepped in. One, the programmers recognized straight away as he waltzed over and stood behind the two. Jack reeled his head back to glare for a moment before looking back to their leader.

Noah cheered as another man made his way to his side, smiling all the while. Everyone has different expressions and reactions to the men entering the room. The young programmer stiffened when Hugo stopped behind her chair. When the former CEO noticed him put both hands on the top of her chair, his face stiffened when she did. Finally, he spoke.

 **"** What the hell's goin' on? **"**

The woman smiled across the room at her seated experiments, raising her fist to lean her chin on.

"Every six months, you guys go out into the real world- and by real world. I mean we're shipping you to another country for two weeks. Okay? Okay. Let's get started," with a clap of her hand, a blue hologram appeared in front of their leader, her eyes traveling across it before smirking, looking up to Alice who unintentional swallowed the saliva in her mouth. "Alice Jones."

"… Yes?"

"Have fun in America- Well, Florida to be correct," with these words, her pale blue eyes widened. Jack glanced between the two women in confusion before catching onto everyone else's expression of shock.

 **"** Errr- what's wrong with America? **"**

Tassiter scoffed at the question, chuckling slightly to anger the man on the opposite side of his partner.

 **"** What _isn't_ wrong with America? **"**

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter twelve of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 _ **Also, thank you for your reviews:  
HeavenlyCondemned**_

 _ **This chapter's question is: What is your favourite piece of Borderlands Merchandise that you own?**_

 _ **Answer: Mine is my vault symbol necklace that my best friend got me for my birthday. That same birthday, I got a birthday reply from Dameon Clarke!**_


	14. Bar date with added pool

Chapter 13

* * *

 **June 4** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Sunday. 11:20.**

* * *

When you're given good news, you would normally cheer or give a physical reaction of joy. But when given bad news, you never know how you truly feel until you've truly thought about it, or that split second you first heard it.

"You cannot be serious!"

"I'm completely serious."

"No way!"

"Yes, _way_."

"Oh, my _fucking_ God- they're all insane! How can your work send you _there_?"

"Um... could someone explain to me what's so bad about Florida?" Rhys interrupted the two girls gossiping on the loveseats, the quieter twin sitting in the other's lap nonchalantly texting away as their friend finally brought them up to date with what was going on in Alice's life. Especially the upcoming trip to America. It was the talk of the company, which was a reasonable response with how messed up America had become because of the two wars they entered into with Russia and North Korea. A war that no one wanted to enter.

"There's a war going on but then again- it's always been a shitty place," Margret growled at the tall man, unintentionally making him flinch and look away. "Seriously? How can you not know that?" Rhys lowered his gaze at the question, glancing back when Alice punched her friend in the shoulder. "Ow! What was that for?"

"Don't be mean," she scowled, shaking her head before she jumped up and headed over to the kitchen. Hesitantly, her roommate followed her inside while the twins turned their attention to the TV as the news streamed on. It always jumped on the new information about the happening war, the guilt and pity was used against the people of Britain to get them to join, to help, or to at least, give them their money to send supplies. Alice didn't believe a word of it since she had eyes and ears inside the soldiers' base. "What is it?"

"They're sending you to a warzone?" One hand moved to pinch the skin at the bridge of his nose, taking a deep inhale to calm his nerves. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"I thought you knew everything about what's going on with me," she raised a brow at his clear irritation and panic, his hand reaching for the glass cabinet. "Rhys, are you okay?"

"What? Pfft- yeah. Of course," it was obvious. "I'm just- I dunno what to say- why the hell would they do this?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," a sigh escaped her as she accepted the glass of water from him, resisting the urge to bite her lip as she glanced back over to her friends who seemed absorbed in the plans that were being publicly announced. "Considering my recent mental state, I can only hope they know what they are doing."

"They do," he defended. "I've worked with Hype- for like, five years," he announced confidently, a smile across his features. "They wouldn't do anything that would hurt you."

"Mainly Jack," she growled. "It's pretty obvious they don't care much for me- but more the project," Rhys frowned hearing this. She sighed. "You know as well as I do that if he wasn't inside my head, that they wouldn't give two shits about my accident."

She was met with silences as Rhys didn't know how to respond to that. It was true that if they didn't need her, they wouldn't have contacted her and given her the cybernetics she needed to do her job. She'd be in massive amounts of debt to pay for it and they wouldn't have helped her deal with it all. Her job would have no doubt let her go by now if it wasn't for their influence.

"I'm... sorry you think that way."

"Rhys. I'm not _stupid_. I know how the world works. Jack hasn't said anything to me in days so he must be as shocked as I am," she rolled her eyes as he sighed, rubbing his neck.

"Well, let's get onto a better subject," he said. "Do you have any plans this week?"

This question made the brunette pause, before a sly smirk made its way onto her face. He instantly narrowed his eyes at this.

"Actually, I have a _date_."

 **June 8** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Thursday. 20:41.**

Social interactions were a must in real life. Right? It wasn't like you could fill your gage like in the sims with chatting online or to one of your twelve cats. People were easy to come by, even harder to find one that didn't annoy you to high hell.

"Hey- sorry I'm late," the young woman called out across the small square of London, smiling softly as the man she was meeting pushed away from the statue he was leaning against in greeting. "The tube was packed more than normally."

The soldier smiled in return, stuffing his hands into his dark trouser pockets as she met him at his side.

"Don't worry about- I left early thinking there'd be traffic but I was wrong," he chuckled, mentioning to the street where there was not toe-to-toe traffic like there wasn't normally. Alice was personally surprised to see that as well. Then again, most people were at home by now. "Shall we?" With a small mention with his hand, they started walking side by side. Of course, she didn't protest when he started heading towards the bar he had mentioned during their texts. She was almost thankfully Jack was staying quiet in the back of her mind like he promised.

"So. What is this bar you keep going on about like then?" Her eyes drifted up to his, watching his hand move to itch the tattoo near his eye.

"Different. That's one way to put it- sweet and bitter beer, huge ass plasma near the dedicated sports section- they have a few pool table," he grinned as he made the hand movements for shooting pool, a small chuckle escaped her as he did. "Love that game."

"Very manly."

"I know right," they both chuckled, smiling as he opened the door to the dimly lit bar. The sign above it glowing an eerie red with the large words 'Dahl's Finest'. Sure enough, it was a very weird name. But, it had a pretty nice ring to it. "Used to come here all the time with my mates- when we had some free time," he smirked, opening the door for her. With a small nod of thanks, she headed inside, noticing the main colour scheme being blue, orange, grey and white. "Lemme grab you a drink," the man said, leading her towards the semi-packed bar,

A small smile spread across her lips as the man called the blonde bartender over, a perky grin across her face as she took sight of Axton.

"What can I get y'all?" When her eyes drifted to the girl in glasses beside him, hand by her shoulder as he raised two fingers.

"Two BMs, extra ice," his voice came out as a purr, the woman instantly nodded her head before getting to work on the two friends. Hearing the names of the drinks, Alice's eyes scanned the cocktail list above their head, finding the named beverage near the end.

"… 'Buster master'," she questions, chuckling dryly at the name; it sounded like some name Jack would make up. Then again, most of the drink names seemed to resemble guns or violence in some sort of way. "That's... an odd name, compared to cocktails like 'Sex on the Beach' and Bloody Mary'." Alice just assumed that the bar catered mainly towards people of the armed forces.

"Compare it to those two and of course it sounds weird," the ex-soldier chuckled, letting her get settled on the barstool before joining her by her right side.

A smile crept across her face when they were both given a short blue drink, ice lining the bottom in a tumbler glass. When he was able to squeeze a smile out of her, he glanced around the room till his eyes stopped on a booth at the far end of the room but decided against it and took a seat at one of the stools. Feeling her eyes on him, he turned back. "I've never asked you about your job, right?"

Her heart stopped at his question, feeling her back twitch as she stopped herself from choking on her drink. It was sweet yet it burned her throat in an indescribable way. _Good_.

"That's sudden," the tech monkey forced a smile up at him as he nodded, taking a sip of his own drink. "It's nothing big or special," when his expression dipped, Alice had a feeling he was going to push for more information. "I'm a software engineer at Jinko Investments," her smile dropped, taking a quick sup. "Nothing big or fancy, the hours suck and so does the pay considering sometimes I practically _live_ there," the rant flew out her mouth before she could stop herself. She stopped when she took in his surprised expression. "But- I love computers so," an awkward chuckle left her. "I'm good."

"If it's so damn shitty- why don't you quit?"

The girl wasn't actually expecting a question aimed towards her rant. It made her pause, bite the corner of her lip on the scar, before glancing back down to her drink.

"It pays the bills and I love computers soo," she forced a smile, watching the man take another swing of his drink. _'Also, the fact my contact says I_ must _have a job or I'll be_ forced _to work at Hype soo... yeah.'_

Of course, the soldier didn't fully believe her words- but he couldn't just outright tell her that she was only saying half the truth. Instead, he bobbed his head and took another sip of his drink. "You know, I know a couple of job openings around where I work. Maybe I could put your name in for ya."

When another spark flew up her spine, the programmer visibly shook. Unknown to her, the former CEO was watching everything with narrowed eyes, biting down on his lip to stop every word that he threatened to yell at the pair. The soldier was shifty in his eyes. The nagging feeling in the back of his mind went stir-crazy around this guy. Either way, Jack didn't trust him as far as he could throw him. Which wasn't far at all considering he couldn't _physically_ touch him.

"Everything alright there?" The ex-soldier took note of the tremble, watching her try to play it cool by taking another sip of her drink.

"Yeah. I just- shiver sometimes," a nervous chuckle left her lips. Of course, it was true. She wasn't wearing the abnormally blue contacts of hers, so she couldn't see the blue man practically looming over her. "Like a ghost passing through me," Jack scoffed.

 _ **'**_ _Ghost- HA!_ _ **'**_ Jack thought bitterly at her words, turning his back away from the situation. But, it didn't last long when he took notice of a pair sitting in the corner. The woman's eyes drawn to the pair as they chatted innocently while sipping their drinks. _ **'**_ _What the hell is that-?_ _ **'**_ His thoughts drew to a stop as his mixed eyes spotting golden orbs glance in his direction. His non-existent heart jumped. The appearance of the woman was different, but those gold jewels were unmistakable. A cropped leather jacket, orange tank top and skinny ripped denim jeans.

"You look pretty different with glasses," the soldier smirked as he stood up from his seat. "Didn't even know you wore them."

"Well, there is a lot you don't know about me," the girl shot back with a raised brow. She stood up when he mentioned her to, following him to the pool table.

"Well, I'd definitely like to-"

 **"We need to get the hell outta here!"**

Alice flinched at the shriek inside her head, her free hand reaching for her forehead as a throb of pain hit her like a train. Jack hadn't physically touched her, but the panic rushing through him was enough to physically attack her nerves. It was like a jolt of electricity shock her body all at once.

"Sonofa-" she cursed softly, a slight rub on her forehead already relieving the pain that was gathering around her temples. It took her a moment to see Axton's questioning expression. "I'm fine, really."

"You sure?"

 **"** Uh- NO! We are not _fine_ , **"** Jack growled, unknown to her that he was filling the space between the two. The man turned his back to the soldier, taking in the physical pain residing in her eyes from his yell. **"** That crazy chick's here- and she is not a fan of me so-! **"**

 _'Jack- you're giving me a headache,'_ Alice thought back bitterly while putting her drink down, her hand moved to the pool table and gripped it a little tighter. _'Please. Stop.'_

 **"Don't care.** We gotta get out of here, cupcake- now. Call a taxi- or cab- or- or whatever- we have to _leave_! **"** Jack's shrieking was causing the girl's migraine to skyrocket the more he yelled, the more her head felt like it was going to split into two. His panic was racing through her veins, her body feeling on edge as her heart pounded in her chest.

"You don't look so good," Axton gave the girl a small squeeze on the shoulder, taking a mental note of how stiff she was as well as the visible shake she was unknowingly admitting. "Want me to call ya a cab?"

Bitterly, Alice nodded her head, knowing full well that she couldn't beat Jack. Even if she forced the asshole to the back of her mind, the girl wasn't sure she wouldn't pass out from the pain of doing so. The stronger he got, the more it hurt her head to try and control him.

"Yes, please."

* * *

 **June 8** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Thursday. 22:15.**

"You. Are being. _Ridiculous_."

 **"** I'm being ridiculous? Who's the chick who went out to a bar she didn't know and accepted some drink from a guy- who coulda just as easily drugged her up, pumpkin? Oh right, THAT'S YOU! You had no idea _who_ the hell was in that bar- the _trouble_ that chick is! **"**

"Oh, would you _please_ stop acting like you care about my well-being- and stop yelling! You're giving me a headache!"

A short slam of a door echoed the small apartment. Rhys jumped in his seat on the loveseats, peering over the back of it as he watched the woman toss to the side her four-inch heels and storm past him and into the kitchen.

"Err- welcome back?"

 **"** Who's yelling? If I was yellin', you'd know about it! **"**

The expression of her face twisted in annoyance at the voice screaming at her, slamming the fridge close after she had grabbed a cold beer and turned to face the direction of where it was coming.

"Oh. Reeeaaaal mature, Jack. How old are you? Five? Two? Act your own age for once," she clicked the top of the drink open as she walked through the hologram unintentionally, taking a sip as she passed into the living room. When she took notice of Rhys staring at her in shock, she bobbed her head in greeting. "Sup. Know where the painkillers are?"

"I- err- I'm not sure- bathroom, maybe? Hi?" With a short nod, she headed in the direction of their shared restroom

 **"** Mature? You want mature- well, I'll give you mature, you _kid_! **"** The CEO stomped his way into the living room, watching her back as she walked. "I've been looking after your ass since you woke the hell up and here you are- having drinks with some- some random _prick_ that you don't even _really_ know! Who's the idiot now, huh- cause it sure as hell ain't me when I'm the one making sure you don't die in some gutter somewhere, **"** the man yelled across the room, watching her twitch in her pause, feeling the rage growing in his veins from his own emotions as well as hers.

"Ha. 'Looking after me' you say?" Her voice took a rocky tone as she turned on her heels, glaring in the direction of the voice as she could feel the tears starting to gather in her eyes. "Then explain why I'm a goddamn mess who wants to kill herself sometimes from the pressure of all this shit," the words slipped without her noticing, both guys in the room staring in shock at her. "If that's you _looking after me_ , then please stop," she turned on her heels and retreated back to her room with a slam of her door.

 **"** Sonofa- Alice- Alice! **"** Jack called after her, reaching his hand out for a moment before pulling it to his hair, glancing over to the shell-shocked programmer on the loveseats with a glare. Deep down, he knew whatever he said wouldn't help her- if not, only make it worse. But, a real person could help. **"** What the hell are you waiting for? Go, ya friggin' idiot - oh my _God_ what do I even pay you for, **"** whilst Jack questioned his own sanity, Rhys found the nerve to leap up from his seat and over to her bedroom door.

When Rhys didn't hear a sound coming from inside, he tapped his knuckles against the door lightly before stepping in. Her room wasn't lit at all, only the dim moonlight streaking through her window let the man know where everything was, including her. She was still, curled up in a ball on her bed hugging a black plush to her face. His expression grimed at the sight, his hand moving to his real elbow and giving it a squeeze. Just what was he supposed to say right now?

"I'm not going to kill myself," his head snapped back to her, watching her pull her face out of the toy enough to stare blankly at him. "If that's what you've come to stop."

"Wha-what? No? I- I know you wouldn't... do... _that._ Are you... are you alright?" he chuckled awkwardly at his own wording but smiled when he took in the quick nod of her head, his eyes moved to the walls around him, taking in her room for the very first time. "Whoa," the words left his mouth as he spotted a wall covered corner to corner in printed photographs. It was literally covered in memories, some looked to be a few years old, while some looked as old as she did.

Alice's gaze followed his, her eyes softening at the sight of her memories.

"Did you do all this?" He asked, unable to stop himself from roaming over it all. There were a few he recognized as herself with the twins; he assumed they were teenagers from how young they looked. They mainly consisted of the three goofing around, playing videos, hanging out around London or sleepovers. Others were older, a fair few of them containing two boys as well as a younger version of herself, ranging from the ages of two to nine. She looked happy in most of them- the boys did as well. They all sported dark brown hair and bright eyes, even similar faces and styles.

"Yeah. It's what been keeping me sane," she murmured loud enough for him, her eyes drifted to a couple of photos of herself with her grandparents, both of them always smiling in the pictures while she worn different, childish expressions depending on what was going on in the photo. Her favourite had to her the few photos of her eighth birthday, where it contained all five of them. "Finding photos and sticking them in order of date and time. Time-consuming, but it's better than spending all day on my computer."

The girl made no effort to hide the bitterness in her voice at how Hype was practically running her life right now. A curfew, rules to live by, having to check in at least once a day with an update of her current situation- even Rhys, who had grown into a very good friend of hers, was to keep a close eye on her at all times when she was at home.

"I wish I had this many photos," Rhys said quietly to himself, squeezing his arm tighter as his eyes drifted over all of the stages of her life.

"Don't you have any childhood photos your parents took," she asked, finally pulling her face out of the plush. He chuckled dryly.

"Not really. My parents worked all the time so I was sent to Youth Clubs when I wasn't at school- ya know- getting my face shoved into toilets. Getting beaten up- normal kiddy stuff," his face was the image you would find in the dictionary under 'Childhood Trauma'.

The girl forced a smile as she slowly started to uncurl herself. Glancing back, she spotted Rhys staring at the college photos in the middle, the smile slipping down into a frown. Unknowing to her, Jack had appeared in the doorway to watch, when he felt her emotions peak.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Rhys," she said.

"I'm sorry about... him," he frowned as he took in the many photos of her and him, smiles always apparent as they were always together. A few of the photos were taken at the beach, others at parties, others during class, but it was mainly the photos of the two outside and exploring that always brought a tear to her eye. "You two seemed really, close."

"Close was one word for it, yeah," with her voice becoming quieter, Rhys moved a little closer to her. "He was the first guy I actually seriously thought about spending my life with- then..." A soft sigh escaped her lips. "Well, that future's gone."

Her roommate subconsciously touched his own forehead when hearing this, recalling how the head trauma had killed him, almost imminently on contact when Daniel's port punctured his brain. It was a quick death, thankfully. Looking back to the photos, his mixed eyes caught onto the two that showed the man playing a piano in a large, dimly lit hall.

"I have to ask," he paused. "What was he like? You never really mention him- I'm sure you have your reasons but," there was another moment of silence. "I'm curious," Rhys wasn't sure if the question was a good or bad one to ask, knowing full well that no one had ever actually asked about him to her, but maybe it was time to.

The moment took the girl by surprise. Momentarily putting the plush down to remove her glasses and rub her eyes with her wrists, already feeling the activities of the day on her shoulders as well as the events to come. Taking a deep breath, she answered.

"He was... ambitious. Very persuasive. Kind. Brave. Positive. Always smiling. Driven," listing these, she couldn't help but feel a light chuckle leave her throat. "But... easily manipulated by his friends... and by his physical desires. He lost concentration a lot when something more important came up and he felt like he just... couldn't ignore it," Alice could easily recall how he used to nuzzle up behind her when she was working, studying, cooking, anything really to get her attention.

Sheepishly, she rubbed the incoming tears away as she spotted Rhys take a seat at the bottom of her bed, hands in his lap as he listened.

"He was my friend and idol in college- the fact he asked me out in the first place took me by surprise. Ha... nearly an entire a week before I could answer him as I kept thinking he was screwing with me," thinking back, the only times he didn't smile was when he was stressed with failing his studies, in order to work extra hours to send money home to his parents, when they had money troubles.

"Daniel- he was," the word made her throat clench as she struggled to say it. "He was my _hero_. S-Someone I wanted to b- _be_ ," she sniffled. "I-I loved him. I wanted to b-be with h-him," it took the woman to calm herself enough to stop the stumbling, already feeling the gaze of Jack on her made her feel a little more centred. "I missed his funeral because of Vasquez. For that... I can never forgive him- or _Hyperion_." That was the first time he used 'Hype' **real** name. "That was all I ever asked for when I was recovering- an hour- ten minutes- a-and they – j-just-"

Rhys had no freaking clue was he was supposed to do when a girl started crying in front of him. His hands went to his lap, out towards her, back to his eyes, then to her hands covering her face, then into the air. WHAT WAS HE SUPPOSED TO DO?!

 **"** Hey, Cupcake, how bout we visit it tomorrow then? **"** The glitchy voice didn't sound too caring, but it didn't sound hostile either. It was more, natural. Jack keeping his tone calm for the woman as her trembles started to die down with each passing moment. **"** We'll get a picnic, a blanket or somethin'- hey! We'll even get some beers to share with the dead prick! **"** Despite his horrid word choice, they were... helping. A little.

"Y-Yeah," the soft murmur left her lips after a moment, glancing to the panicking Rhys who had paused mid movement to stare at her with wide eyes. Reading his face was enough to bring her out of her self-hating-and-hating-Hyperion moment. "Cra- I'm sorry Rhys," she stuttered. "Are you okay?"

"Huh- what? Of course. I'm fine- great, really," a nervous chuckle left him. Jack rolling his eyes at the man as he moved himself to his regular spot on her bed. "Are you alri- okay?"

Alice, of course, wasn't entirely sure of the answer to the question, but nonetheless, nodded her head.

"I'm getting there."

"Good- good," moving his hand to his elbow, he gave it a firm squeeze as he watched the girl awkwardly shuffle on her bed. "Well- I'm gonna catch some shut eye sooo," he chuckled, moving towards her door. "Call me if you need anything- you have my number and I'm like, riiight next door so-"

"I know, Rhys," the weird man always made her smile, watching him slowly nudge himself towards her door. "Good night."

"Good night and- well, sleep well," with a small wave and smile, he escaped the room with a sigh of relief from both sides. Rhys could be too awkward for his own good, while the topic itself was an uncomfortable one for the girl.

But, left Jack feeling a little more knowledgeable about her past relationship. He knew they were close from her memories, but he didn't know that she looked up to him in that sort of way. It was the type of way he wanted others to look up to him, how he wanted his people, daughter, lovers, wives even. To at least once, look at him like Alice had once with her past lover.

When her roommate left, she wasted no time standing up and getting changed into a long, white dress shirt to sleep in. It was comfortable and she thought it suited her, despite the fact she was just going to bed in it.

The atmosphere in the room was beyond uncomfortable, making the woman shift and shuffle before moving to her phone to turn some sort of radio on to relieve the tense of silence between the two. What she didn't count on, was the first song coming on being one from twenty-seventeen. It was a song her mother loved by Taylor Swift, a singer she wasn't keen on. Switching to another station, it was another song by the singer but with a duet with Ed Sheeran. With a short glare and another station, she found comfort in a Ballard by Panic! At the disco. Thank God. Even if the ballad was actually a song but with the word 'ballad' in the title.

Jack scoffed at the familiar song, recognising the intro but with how many times she had listened to it in that week alone, it was hard not to grow accustom to the songs she played on a loop. The man was one of those people that would listen to a playlist once then move onto the next. Alice was one of those rare people who could sing to a song for hours on a loop.

It was then that he recalled what happened at the bar earlier. Sure, he wasn't at all happy with how friendly the ex-solider and his user were getting. Sure, he was pissed she let him buy him a drink and get physically close to her. Sure, he wanted to strangle the man for continuously making advances the damn woman was too blind to see. But most of all, he was mad at himself for reacting so badly to the situation _he_ had created. They were in public, if Lilith _did_ try something, it would be all over the news and media in seconds. She wasn't stupid. As much as he hated to admit it, the woman was smart. _Too_ smart for her own good. And all he did was create a messy situation that ultimately caused Alice more harm than good.

"Ally I," the hologram paused in his thoughts, moving to rub the back of his neck. "About earlier..."

His voice trailed off as he glitched out for a moment, reappearing on the bed beside her. It was like Alice knew he was there, glancing in his direction before her eyes trailed back to her phone. Seeing this, Jack pulled his hand away.

"I coulda handled what happened before better," he sighed, his hands dropping into his lap whilst crossing his legs better. His eyes were drawn downwards. Struck his foot in his mouth again.

"Yeah... I know."

"I didn't do it cause of that prick- well, maybe a little- but- he wasn't the main reason," Jack shook his hand in a dismissing manner regardless of the fact that she couldn't see it. The fact she could feel his presence was enough. Alice's eyes drifted to him again, moving to roll onto her side facing where his voice was coming from.

"You mentioned a woman before," it was one of the few things she remembered apart from her annoyance; _she was here. That crazy chick's here_. Who was this woman that actually made Jack fear for her life? " _Who_ is she?"

"Chances are you have an idea that Hyperion- well, ain't exactly from this universe," she instantly gave him a look of disbelieve. "And if we are- we're- we're pretty far away from here."

"Jack. What you're saying isn't making any sense," slowly, she sat up. "Universal travel isn't a thing- at least, not in my lifetime," her words slowed as his voice spoke over her in her own mind.

 **"** Sweetie **.** Just cause it isn't possible for you guys to make it, doesn't mean my people couldn't, **"** he said. **"** From what I've gathered from this place. We have waaaaaaay better stuff than you have. **"**

Alice couldn't hold back rolling her eyes at his words, even though she was mentally struck by the ideas of multiple universes. "Universes... not parallel but... a different one?"

Jack shrugged his shoulders, clearly unsure about the subject.

"I dunno. The eggheads at R&D brought the topic of faraway travel once- but it was stupid at the time," he waved his hand in a dismissive manner. "We had wars to fight, other companies to crush. Stuff like that wasn't what we needed at the time."

There was a short pause.

"What if you used one of those universes as a getaway universe to start again if you needed to retreat from one of those wars permanently?" The words flowed without her realizing it, unknown to her that Jack was staring at her with narrowed eyes.

Yes, he was truly thinking what she said over. She was one of the few people he _listened_ to, took in their words and thought them through. Thinking about it now, if one of his scientists had worded it like that- maybe added some more good points in like that. He might have considered funding it.

"That's... not a bad idea," the programmer murmured. "Anyways, back to the crazy chick."

"Right."

"She's one of these stupidly powerful chicks we have in our universe- Sirens, they're called. Only seven of 'em in the entire universe. Insanely strong with a unique power that only they control," he explained, glaring at the ceiling as he recalled the information he had gathered about them. "She's one of _them_. Absolutely hates me," he shrugged again. "Not shocking. I did order her death."

This caused Alice to shuffled and sit up, looking in his direction with a hard stare.

"Why did you do that?"

"She wasn't on my side. Better have her dead than against me," he said it like how children explained _the sky is blue._ To Jack, it was Hyperion logic. Better have a strong opponent dead then against you. For his User, it made her feel abnormally uncomfortable.

The man watched her shuffle back down onto her back, grabbing the Enderman plush and yanked it to her chest. The former Hyperion CEO glared at the blank faced toy.

"Is... murder a common occurrence in your world?"

It took him a moment to realize what she was asking. Was _he_ killed? Murdered by _her_ , maybe? Did he murder people?

Turning his head back to the ceiling, he sighed.

"Yeah," he grunted, his arm moving to cover his eyes. "More common than diamond ponies who shit guns."

Cue a pregnant pause.

"There's no such thing as diamond pony. Even more so one that defecates weapons."

"And that, baby, is where you're wrong!"

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter thirteen of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 _ **Also, thank you for your reviews:  
HeavenlyCondemned**_

 _ **This chapter's question is: If you could create a gun elemental, what would you make?**_

 _ **Answer: I'd harness the power of air. Imagine blasting a hole through a dude's chest with the power of wind? BOOM!**_


	15. Reunion

Chapter 14

* * *

 **July 9** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Sunday. 11:20.**

* * *

The room was pitch black despite it being early morning. The windows blackened out and walls covered to stop any sounds from escaping. Every person in the room stayed in their assigned places, hands by their sides as a woman stepped into the middle, raising her hand and lighting the chandelier above her with the flames materializing from her body.

Eight bodies filled the small room, the lit woman raising her other hand in a mention to the rest. Each took their assigned seats, a tense aura filling the air as she started to pace the room, her palms gripping tightly on her elbows. They had the information they wanted- but not what they _needed_. But that would do.

For now.

"I'm sure you all know why I've called you away from your current assignments," the firehawk frowned as she glanced around her room of soldiers, halting at the black board she had at the front beside the door. "Mordecai recently came back with two USBs from one of Hyperion's lower ranked offices stationed around the edges of London."

"Never expected them to set up shop in Surrey," said man sighed lightly, cracking his neck after a moment. "Weren't too big though. Easy to get in, lot harder to get out."

"Cool. What's on it?" The Mechromancer beamed at the idea of a new mission, a main mission and not one of the more recent side missions her group had been sent out on for the last month. It was boring and she was raring for some real action. "Anything im-port-ant?"

With a small nod, the siren continued.

"Sadly, there wasn't anything top secret. But, we did find out one thing," with this, she grabbed one of the pieces of chalk from the board, drawing out a small diagram before putting it down with more than a little extra power for affect. "Everyone in the Artificial Intelligence Program will be going aboard to 'expand their minds'," for extra measure, she rolled her golden eyes and shook her head.

"So... they'll be out of England," Axton stated, following just where she was coming from. "What's the plan?"

The redhead seemed to smirk at the question, the USB melting in her hand as it lit with her phantom fire.

"How's a vacation sound, guys?"

* * *

 **July 16** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Sunday. 19:23.**

The weather these days was filled with either dry-heat or an unbearable humidity that would make dogs pant and people strip off to the barest of clothes to counteract the hot spell. For the more decent members of sociality, they were reduced to tank tops and lose pants. The young programmer wore one of her favourites shirts of Nemo and baggy blue tartan shorts. It was an odd combination for London, but with her striking blue contacts, it fitted with her style.

"Ohmygod I hate the summer," the brunette was nonchalantly waving the thin paper fan that they were selling at most newsstands, the design being simple and popular. The Union Jack flag. The name only seemed to boost her AI's opinion of England as every one in ten people wore something to symbolise their proud, powerful country.

 **"** Summer's great, babe. Gives the ladies a reason to wear those skimpy bikinis and sunbath _naked_ , **"** Jack chimed from beside her, walking with his hands in his pockets as he couldn't help but absentmindedly stare at the young women passing them. Most only dressed in shorts and a crop top.

"Such a mature reason to love the summer," Alice murmured to herself, nonchalantly touching the earpiece Rhys had given her last month in order to talk to Jack without getting so many odd looks. After accidently slipping up and growling at the man on a crowded tube train, the young woman refused to acknowledge him till they were in private. She had gotten so used to talking to him in private, it made her forget that he wasn't _real_. He wasn't _beside_ her. He wasn't _with_ her. "Any other reason that isn't slutty?"

 _She was starting to see him more as a human than an AI._

 **"** Hmm. Oh- those tasty summer cocktails they make at the beach, **"** the man visibly sighed at the memory in his head. **"** A drink in one hand and a- **"**

"If you say 'a chick in the other' I'm going to have to punch you," she threatened, feeling the blush already starting to surface on her face as the man merely grinned at her reaction, watching the woman dart through the thick crowd. While he continued to snicker, Alice pushed a few of her longer bangs behind her ear, already spotting the twins in the distance. What surprised her was seeing Margret... in a dress. "The hell..."

 **"** Wow. The lesbian cleans up well. Ain't that a shocker. **"**

It didn't take long for the two identical beings to spot the Nemo-loving-being slowly walking towards them in confusion. Judith gave a simple wave while Margret yelled. "The hell you doing dressed like that, Dory?!"

Alice instantly flinched at the staring the three were getting from the surrounding crowd, nonchalantly stuffing the fan into her bag. After moving closer to her friends, she gave Mag a hard flick to the forehead.

"One, don't shout in public. Two, why the _hell_ are _you_ wearing a dress?"

"Our reunion," Judith replied like saying _'the sky is blue'._ To this, the programmer couldn't have been any more confused. When she didn't get a response, she sighed. "Our **college** reunion. Even if we weren't in the same course, we were in the same year. Marcus made the event on Facebook."

"Didn't Maggie tell you?" Asked the bustier twin. Margret chuckled nervously at the question.

 _'Ah. Right. Daniel's best friend,'_ she thought, biting the inside of her cheek when she recalled the American continuously hugging and nudging her whenever he saw her. He was one of the very few people that knew the two were a couple.

"I forgot. Er- well. We said we'd drag you along anyway," the flatter twin looked away from the two, trying to avoid eye contact. it took the contact wearer a moment to take in the posh restaurant and clicking that she was not at all wearing the attire for it. With a small sigh, she adjusted her bag at her side.

"Well, I need to buy an outfit quickly and change."

 **"** Pfft. Nah. Go in with the talking fish on your shirt, **"** Jack chimed in her ear, grinning from ear to ear. **"** It'll be _hi-larious_. **"**

The twins glanced between each other, both holding back a dry chuckle. They both shared the same thought. _'That's probably a smart idea.'_

With a quick bye, the programmer headed into the closest clothing store that she knew. Which, happened to be one she was rather fond of. Next. It was a little expensive, but with her weekly savings of not buying chocolate and instead bribing Rhys to buy her sweets, she had been saving a little over twenty pounds monthly. Which was, in her opinion, more than enough for a quick change of clothes and shoes.

Alice wasted no time choosing a dress or waiting for Jack's opinion. Simply, grabbing the first dress with long sleeves that was her style, size and colour- not sweating on the small details like the little black birds that flowed at the bottom or the sickly pastel blue colour. It was a dress, with long sleeves, but was extremely thin for the summer. And simple black heels that would go with any outfit for later.

 **"** God- that's a horrible combination, **"** the AI chimed in her ear after she had paid for the outfit and proceeded to the changing rooms. Instead of listening to the program in her mind, she began to hum a sort tune as she started changing into the new outfit; removing the price tags first, of course. **"** Ugh. I hate the colour blue, **"** he groaned.

"I could never find the right way to tell you," the woman whispered along to her own tune, tugging on the heels with a slight growl; like most short women- heels were a must. But, boy did they suck. "Have you noticed I've been gone," with a small sigh, she tapped the top of her shoe against the tiles, nodding before stepping out.

 **"** Wait-wait-wait- this is a new one, **"** Jack raised a brow as she continued walking out the store; he was shocked to see her singing a new song. He had noticed over the seven months he had been with her, that she was a creature of habit- even sticking to the same twenty songs she had on her phone's playlist and rarely finding new songs that interested her. This, was a tune the former CEO didn't know. For this, he was a little curious. **"** What brought this on? **"**

The young lady glanced to the holographic man by her side, turning back forward once she got to the crossing.

"Nerves maybe? I don't know. I'm seeing people I haven't seen in like- over a year ago now," she reached up for the ear piece, looking the man in the eye as she removed it. "I'll talk to you later." Translation: Shut up, I have to do this without looking like a crazy person.

Jack scoffed at her words, rolling his eyes momentarily before disappearing into the back of her mind. Just watching till they got back to the restaurant. With a quick word to the waiter, the young woman was lead to a large back room, over fifteen seated at a long table. Alice spotted the twins in seconds, Margret already shamelessly flirting with the waitress to her side while Judith awkwardly nodded along with the conversation her old classmate started with her.

"Good to see Margret hasn't changed since college," a strong, deep voice spoke from the brunette's side. Alice couldn't stop the twitch as she glanced down to her old friend, a small smile making its way onto her face as she recognized him regardless of the short cornrows he now supported... compared to the thick long dreadlocks he had before. "Still flirting with every hot chick, she sees."

"Yeeaaah. She's still the same," the smile grew into an even bigger one as the programmer took the spare seat beside him, taking note of how much sharper his eyes were since she last saw him over a year ago. "Looks like you've changed a lot, Marc."

"Ya think?" He chuckled, reaching for his pint as the waitress had finally gotten Margret to leave her alone to take everyone's orders. "So have you. Rocking the cybernetics, I see," when his dark eyes bounced to her arm, she instantly pulled her sleeve down in an attempt to hide it. "Why do you hide it? It looks hella cool."

"It's a shitty reminder, I guess," the young woman murmured, finally looking away from the man. With an awkward laugh, he rubbed his neck.

"Fuck- yeah. Sorry."

"It's fine. I've lived with it up till now, I'll continue doing so," with a small smile, she gave the waitress their order taking note of her favourite hologram giving everyone the look over. It was then, did she realize what he was doing. He was making faces, putting his hands through them with different actions. For one, he was putting his fingers through the chest of a man and chuckling like an evil man.

Bringing a hand up to her mouth, Alice held back her laughter at the sight. Both men noticed this, one looking confused whist the other only grinned. Just as he planned.

"I'm s-sorry. Seeing everyone reminded me of our going away party," his eyes shone at the mention.

"Oh yeah! When Abby got drunk and streaked!"

Alice's stomach turned at the mention.

"Please don't remind me of that horrid moment," the young woman shivered, taking a sip of the drink that was placed down in front of her. "I didn't like her that much- thank God she isn't here."

"Well, that's not surprising," Marcus was completely unaware of the hologram not sitting opposite with him, staring daggers at the young man. "She did try to steal Dan off you-"

"Multiple times."

"Yeaaah. Failed each time though," with a dry chuckle, he surveyed the room around them before back to the budding young woman. "What're you doing these days, anyway," he asked, glancing to her taking in her sudden stiffness. "That bad?"

"Let's just say- I didn't see my life like this two years ago," hearing this, the man leaned over and squeezed her shoulder to provide her some comfort. She gave him a soft smile at this.

"I don't think anyone here expected Daniel to bite the bullet so early. Hell, we all thought Maggie over there would do it first out of us all!"

"Hey!"

"With how many girls you hit on, we all thought you'd get stabbed by a jealous lover or something," the guy beside her commented, chuckling with the rest of the table. The noise enough was able to Alice smile, rubbing her thumbs over the drink in her hands as it reminded her of college. The laughter and relaxed atmosphere. She missed it so much.

The evening dragged on smoothly. It was calming, almost therapeutic for Alice and most of the ex-students who missed the life of no receptibilities. For the programmer, she missed the lack of stress. The companionship of her old friends, of her supportive teachers, the fact she just had to cross a hall to see Margret and Judith.

If someone asked her in college, 'where do you see yourself in a year's time?' She'd answer, 'I'd have a job I enjoy, maybe putting a deposit down on a house, hopefully travelled a little.' She hadn't done any of that. Her job was the source of her migraines, she lived in a cheap apartment with her new friend near London where she didn't really feel safe in, she had never travelled outside of England before and she was nowhere near putting down some money for a house. Alice never expected to see herself like this a year ago. It was a setback, yes. But, she didn't plan to call it quits anytime soon.

 **"** C'mon already! Hurry up! **"** She had to look after this guy, after all. **"** The new episode of _Dead Rising_ is on tonight- and I am _NOT_ missing it 'cause of your ass! **"** Yep. Despite how much she wanted to punch him sometimes, she did care for this moron. As much as she hated to admit it, Jack _was_ what was keeping her going.

* * *

 **July 16** **th** **, 2023.**

 **Sunday. 22:01.**

"Rhys, are you seriously not going to join me? You love this movie," the woman questioned, looking over to the man as he sipped his decaf coffee with a look of dread across his face as he continued heading for the hallway. Lately, she felt like he had been avoiding her.

"Sorry. I'm behind on my work and Assquez is gonna have my ass if I don't get it done by tomorrow," ha. Good pun though.

She frowned as she leaned her head back to watch him disappear into the hallway, her eyes drifting to the hologram seated beside her who was impatiently waiting for the movie to start. The tapping of his foot as well as the way he squeezed and released the leather under his fingers said so. Even if he couldn't physically touch it. With a light sigh, she grabbed the controller to the PlayStation. Jack took note of it.

 **"** Don't get so sad about cybo-boy- he's missing out, **"** he growled, throwing his middle finger in the direction of the hallway. **"** Dick doesn't know a good movie even if it smacked him across the face, **"** the man drew his focus back to the TV, watching her type in her password for her account. **"** Where's the popcorn? **"**

"Don't want any."

 **"** Who said it was for you? **"** He challenged, smirking down towards her as he wrapped his arm around the back of the settee behind her, his fingers scraping her skin which was enough to make her shiver. Sparks flying across the bare skin as she was sat comfortably in her orange tank top and red shorts.

After a moment, she glanced back to him, just catching his eye.

"You can't eat anything."

 **"** I appreciate the look of _it_ , **"** it took her a moment to understand he was teasing her to make her stand up so he could gawk at her ass. Again. **"** Sweet, curvy and- **"**

"I get it I get it- just- shut up!" Her face grew into a blush at his words, jumping off of the settee and retreating back into the kitchen to start on the God forsaken popcorn to make him quieten down. Unaware of his wide grin and muted burst of laughter. A small bowl would be enough, even if she didn't finish it all, she could give the rest to Rhys for a midnight snack if he was still working.

Once the popcorn was popped, she headed back over to her favourite seat, pulling the blanket back over herself as Jack, again, swung his arm back around near her shoulders. The man would comment it was a comfortable position, some may argue it was a protective trait. Possessive even. Either way, Alice paid it little mind. She felt safe in his present, which was becoming a rare thing whenever she left her apartment. But, apparently, that came with the PTSD.

"Did you have nights like this when you were alive?" The question came to mind as she glanced up to the man, his eyes darting from the TV and to her. The holographic blue orbs looked to the ceiling for a moment in thought, before back to the movie.

 **"** Rarely. There was too much work to be done, **"** his answer was short and to the point, but this only raised her curiosity.

"So, you never just, curled up on the settee and watched a shitty movie with a little company?"

 **"** What company, Alice? **"** The corner of his lips dipped down at her words. **"** My girlfriend was on a shithole of a planet- we visited each other- like- every couple'a weeks and my daughter didn't like spending time with me. **"**

Hearing this, the woman curled up a little tight beside him, moving her chin to rest on a pillow. She gave the man one last glance before turning back to the movie before them.

"Friends?"

 **"** Don't need any. **"**

Her stomach dropped. She bit down on her lip for a moment, a silent sigh leaving her. A thought crossed her mind, moving back to properly look at him.

"What would you consider us then? Friends?" It was a simple question, but one that hadn't been answered yet- and Alice was more than a little curious of what his opinion of it was. She considered him a friend, maybe a little more- sort of in the dark zone where she didn't have a name for it.

Jack's eyes narrowed for a second at the opening screen, seeing the kids greeting their grandfather with smiles.

 **"** Not sure, kid. Hadn't really thought about it, **"** he answered, scratching his chin for a moment. Her smile dipped down at this, something he caught last second. **"** Don't worry about it, we're cool. I like you, that's enough, eh, _"_ he gave her shoulder a soft squeeze despite her not being able to feel it. Jack rested his arm to be touching her, sparks shooting up her arm and down her spine at this. But, she was happy with his answer. No more pushing. Seeing as he could take it back at any second now.

The young woman couldn't help but hum along to the entrance theme, Jurassic Park being one of her favourite movies growing up and the newest Jurassic World was the best for her. Rhys loved the dinosaurs, Jack loved the mayhem that occurred after the happiness and tranquillity came to a stop after twenty minutes. Something the woman could agree was amazing to see. After the sunshine, after all the laughter. The rain came. The storm, wind, hellfire. No happiness lasted forever.

But for the love of God, let the sun shine just a little bit longer.

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter fourteen of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story! But- now I'm gonna be serious with y'all and why I haven't updated in over a damn month and I've been shitting myself a little about writing this.  
Real life has been a huge ass mess the last two months and it's pulling me back and forth between being fine and rolling down the hill of depression._**

 ** _For one, my partner's dad is dying. Has been for the last two years from over three different types of cancer and the doctors have said he has less than a month- so- that's one stab through the brain and chest. Another would be looking for a job and I'm sure pretty much every young adult my age can confirm- it's a complete bitch being told 'hey your interview was perfect! But- sorry, someone else got it' later to find out he has more than double your experience or has a friend on the inside- which sucks hairy balls.  
_**

 _ **So yeah, I'm sending my apologies to all my readers for not updating the last month and I shall try my damn best to get back on track. Beware for darker themes from here now since the plot really starts with the trip to Florida. I'll be able to properly describe the place in October since I'll be visiting Orlando soon ;) Many thanks to my parents for the free trip- my first time out of Europe! I'm sure they just invited us cause they know both my partner and I need it ^-^;;**_

 _ **Also, thank you for your reviews:  
HeavenlyCondemned! It really brought a smile to my face**_

 _ **This chapter's question is: What's your favourite genre to watch?**_

 _ **Answer: I'm personally a big comedy, fantasy or animation fan. I blame watching a lot of G**_ ** _hibli as a kid and my Uncle buying me an animated movie every Christmas :)_**


	16. Breakage and Break-ins

**Chapter 15**

 _Ju ly 31st, 2023._

 _Monday. 08 :00._

* * *

The sun certainly wasn't shining for Alice Jones this month. For one, military training had started up in order to get her ready for exploring America. Fair enough, she had a crew to go with her to protect her, but if she were to get separated, then she would be in deep trouble. You know what the kicker was? Her Lieutenant was her oldest brother, Peter, who was far from happy about having his team and himself protect her whilst she explored the dangerous war-divided country of the United States of America.

And he thought she was pleased with the fact her brother was going to be watching her back twenty-four/seven? Hardly. She openly protested against it. To the point, she ignored him when she wanted to / could do so. He looked like a stiff and sure as hell acted like one.

"Keep your finger off the trigger till ready to fire."

 **"** That's what she's doin'. **"**

"Keep it pointed to the ground till you have a target."

 **"** Again. She's already doing that, dickshit. **"**

"Hey. Your feet should be shoulder-width apart with the foot opposite your dominant hand about a step past the other foot. Lean forward a little with your knees bent, make sure you're firmly balanced. The elbow of your dominant arm should be almost straight and your non-dominant elbow should be flexed at a slightly obtuse angle. Your dominant arm must be in line with the handgun and pointed at the target."

 **"** Oh whoa- do you ever shut up, Petey? **"**

The young woman snapped at the two talking, glancing over her shoulder to glare at her brother who stood beside her, ready to pull the lever to release the targets. When he tugged it down, Alice didn't hesitate to pull the trigger on the 'threatening' targets. When the run came to an end, she checked her ammo before putting the safety back on, handing the gun back to her brother with a tight frown.

"I know how to handle a gun, remember," she pointed out whilst heading out of the 'live' zone. The taller man followed, putting the gun away in its rightful place on the way. "I've done this stupid training before."

"You stopped when you were eighteen. We are legally obligated to retest and reexamine your skills to see if you're combat ready," he pointed out, knowing she's be turning twenty-three in the upcoming months which would have marked the five-year mark of her inexperience. "It's for your safety, as well as your teammates."

The young woman groaned at his voice, rubbing her forehead at the growing headache caused by the stress of him, as well as the growing annoyance Jack was feeling. He didn't show it, but the pressure in her brain was a tell-tale sign of it.

When they came to a stop near the gun zone, they both turned back to the practice screening, their eyes both becoming evenly unimpressed as they watched the man, dressed in a suit, trying to reload his gun with much trouble.

"Is he trying to insert the magazine the wrong way around?"

"You weren't so great yourself when you first started."

"At least I could hit the target," she murmured, glancing back from Hugo to the target, spotting many bullet holes in the wall past the human cut out, not a single one has pierced it. It was truly impressive how a man could miss using a Taurus semi-automatic pistol. Out of eight shots, he missed all of them. "Does he have to come with me?"

"They want a live escort from the company. As much as I don't want a newbie here," he said with a short glance down to her. "It's ordered from the higher-ups."

"Because Hype sponsors the army and pays for everything," it wasn't a snarky comment, it was a fact. Hype gave the army much more money than the government did, plus guns, supplies, new technology. They were practically under their thumb, accepting any 'request' they gave them. Most powers did, in most countries for a fact. She could only guess their project was being run in England because it was one of the safest countries on the planet. "What do you think of the request?" Peter didn't reply to her murmur; His answer would have been less than pleased. He simply watched the tall man finally reloading the gun. At his side was his second-in-charge, who looked irritated at teaching the man how to defend himself.

* * *

 _Ju ly 31st, 2023._

 _Monday. 20:26._

By the time the training came to an end, Alice was already exhausted from the day's wear. Hugo had actually gone home after the first few hours since his meek, company made body was nowhere near as used to the intense training. Alice, on the other hand, pushed through it all till the end. On the train home, she happily texted Rhys to pick up some 'Deep Heat Lotion' for her aching muscles, quickly getting a reply from the lanky man.

 _[Sure. I can get that from Superdrug, right?]_

She replied.

 _[Yes. As well as at Asda, Tesco's, Co-Op, pretty much anywhere that has a drugs isle.]_

The woman explained in her text, smiling a little as she leaned back into her seat. Before she could even get comfortable, another text came to her attention.

 _[Have you eaten yet?]_

By this time, Jack had materialized himself into the seat in front of her, watching her face change as she replied back and forth with the nerd he had a personal vendetta against. The man annoyed him, that was it.

 _[No, not yet. They made me some lunch earlier but I was too tired to eat.]_

 _[You really should have eaten it.]_

 _[Yeaaaaah. Noticing that now.]_

 _[Just what am I going to do with you? ^-^;]_

 _[Love me. Feed me. Forever be a good housewife.]_

 _[I'm not a housewife.]_

 _[You'd be a good one.]_

 _[Ugh.]_

A chuckle left her lips when she read his last text, flinching when her screen went black all of a sudden before she could reply back. _'What the hell?'_ She questioned, turning the phone around and over till she took notice of the blue hologram glaring at her from his seat. _'Did you just kill my phone,'_ she asked him, seeing the man further narrow his eyes on her. She frowned at this. 'What the hell?'

 _ **'** I've been sittin' here for the last five minutes. Surely texting that dweeb can't be more entertaining than talking to me, **'**_ he questioned, his lips tugging into a frown.

The thing is, normally Alice would be pissed with the fact that he was trying to physically grab her attention. But for some reason, she found it, sorta... cute. Maybe she was just seeing it in a new light. It made her smile a little, Jack narrowing his eyes at this.

 _'Sorry. Didn't notice you there,'_ she hummed, stuffing her phone into her pocket to keep him happy. Seeing this, his shoulders slumped whilst his eyes followed her. There was something up with her, and he knew it. _'Did you enjoy your nap?'_

 _'Er- Yeah. It was soo long, don't think I'm gonna sleep tonight, **'** _he yawned, stretching out for a moment more before looking back at her. _**'** How bruised are ya anyway? **'**_ He questioned, a smirk growing on his lips as he took notice of the growing purple patch near her cheek. When the woman noticed where he was looking, she shrugged.

 _'Not sure. Hurts though.'_

It was true, she had lost count after four when she got into the practice spar with one of the newer cadets. She was almost certain that Hugo was having fun watching her ass hit the floor whenever she got put down.

Time started to past them quite quickly as they chatted about random things. And when they didn't know what to talk about, Jack's stories happily filled the gap. But, when they were near their station, the train came to a shaky stop two stations before their own. A man in uniform stepping on with a torn yet stern expression.

"Everybody off. There's been an accident at Peckham so we'll be closed till the situation is handled. Head to the front desk to receive a free pass for the rest of the day on the busses," he told the train, moving onto the next carriage whilst everyone looked to each other with concerned looks. Most of the more social passengers got up in seconds and headed to the ticket desks to find out just what was going on. Some of the more mature ones headed off to get a bus to help speed up their travels.

Alice stood there for a moment more, unsure of what to do till she stepped off the train. It was a rail train and there was a bus stop nearby. It would take her another half an hour, but she would at least get home before nine. Grabbing her oyster from her pocket, she followed the crowd out. When outside, the rain she hadn't even noticed till now started hitting her, instantly soaking the small woman.

"Holy shit that's cold," she shivered, pulling her jacket closer to herself as she started heading in the direction of the nearest bus stop that headed in her direction. Now to find one that headed down her street. _'God it's so cold.'_

 **"** Where the hell did this shit weather come from? **"** Jack questioned, looking up at the sky with a scowl as he spotted the woman shivering as she searched the bus stop sign for her road along the buses' designated stops. **"** Make sure to strip when we get in. You'll catch the black death or something, **"** he frowned, noticing how quickly her clothes were starting to stick to her pale skin, showing off the little dips her body did have. She wasn't awfully skinny like Rhys was, but the dips her hips and breasts made were easier to see with the rain since she normally wore quite baggy shirts to hide it all.

 _'I know I know,'_ Alice couldn't help but chuckle lightly at his nagging, finding the right bus after a moment not bothering to try and shuffle her way under the already crowded bus cover. It was only about ten stops so half an hour, max. _'No need to worry, Jack.'_

He scoffed at her words.

 **"** Worried? Who's worrying? **"** He questioned, moving to run a hand through his forever styled hair staring at a few women across the road who had been caught in the downpour. What made him laugh was that they were all in shorts and tight tee shirts. It was a hot sight, but no doubt they were going to catch their death of a cold if they didn't get inside soon.

It wasn't like it bothered him in any way- well, it did. If he was alive and physically, he'd hit on them. They were very pretty. Most of the women here were but the makeup they caked themselves in- it reminded him too much of his cheating ex- was funny seeing their foundation running down their face like clown paint... Alice on the other hand. She rarely wore makeup unless she was going out somewhere in public. Which was rare in this sociality.

Once they had gotten onto the overly crowded bus, it wasn't surprising that the only gossip going around was about Peckham station; if anything, it just made Alice worry about the people who were at the station.

"Did you hear about Peckham? Some guy set off a makeshift bomb!"

"They're saying on Twitter that the bomb diffused but they're sending the bomb squad in just to make sure."

"Ugh, I hate people like that! Disgusting!"

"I know right. I hope everyone's alright."

Was everyone alright? She was grateful she had gotten on the next train or else she might have gotten caught up in the mess. Her stomach dropped at the idea of being caught up in that mess, with it being so damn close to home.

 _'It feels like all these attacks lately are so close to home,'_ she thought, leaning her head back against the window she was against, her eyes glued to the neon sign down the aisle that read the next stop. Only two more left. Her vision moved to Jack who was standing beside her, his eyes closed he seemed calm and peaceful for once. _'Aren't you worried?'_

 **"** Worrying ain't gonna help us, kid, **"** he frowned, glancing down to meet her eye watching her scowl up at him. **"** Just gonna be prepared for when shit hits the fan. **"**

 _'I guess.'_

Just what were these people capable of doing?

* * *

July _31st, 2023._

 _Monday. 22:10._

"I'm home," came the girl's weak greeting into the lit apartment, sighing as she let her bag drop to the floor making her way inside. When she didn't get a reply straight away, Jack instantly materialized himself beside her, carefully pulling her to the wall to her right as took note of the TV being turned on, showing some random show she couldn't make out. It was enough to make her heart pound, especially when she spotted the only potted plant she owned thrown across the floor and into the living room doorway.

 **"** Shit, **"** the hologram cursed, walking first into the room and spotting no one suspicious. The windows were open, blinds yanked down, bits of dirt from the plant scattered across the floor. He did, whoever, notice Rhys lying on the floor, bruises flowering across his face and left arm, blood leaking from the corner of his mouth and port. **"** Well shiiiiiiit- kiddo, you may wanna call a medic, **"** he commented, quickly going to check out the bedrooms, bathroom, and kitchen for anything.

When the woman saw who he was referring to, her eyes went wide as she rushed down to his side beside the settee. The first she did was checking he was breathing- he was. Then his pulse- weak, but it was there. He was alive. But, the blood still dripping from his head worried her greatly, seeing it once before with death being its outcome.

"Rhys," Alice gave the man a soft shake by his shoulders. "Rhys, please, wake up," nothing. Not even a small stir. The panic started to race through her like a wildfire, ignoring the hologram that glitched himself back beside her as she stumbled to grab her phone, dialing the number for nine-nine-nine. Within minutes, she was instructed what to do as well as how long the police and ambulance would be. "C'mon Rhys. You can't fucking die on me now," it took the woman a moment to correctly move the man into the right position, her heart beating faster in her chest still.

Jack was lingering close to the woman as she kept her fingers pressed just below his chin, obviously keeping a close eye on his pulse. Thankfully, the river of blood had stopped running from his port, but that didn't leave the man any less shitty looking from when they found him. Even Jack it mentioned aloud that he looked like a pile of crap. Which apparently _'wasn't much of an improvement'._ Earning a quick snap from the woman near him.

"I don't wanna hear you right now," was her reply to his cheeky comments, her eyes never darting away from the man on the floor.

Instantly, the man was obviously shocked by her words but for no more than a couple of seconds, glitching to her actual side to yell in her face but the expression she held was heart-breaking, even for the ex-CEO. The brunette was close to letting a long wave of tears lose any second, biting on her bottom lip to stop any unnecessary sounds lose. Her spare hand was clenched on the programmer's sleeve while the other one was trembling a little on his neck. It was the first time she looked truly scared. At least, before her mind rationalized the situations with the enemy and how they wouldn't risk being exposed- but this, there were only two options. He died, or he survived. And the option of death weighing on her mind was enough to make her body shake with fear.

Pushing the only lingering sense of dread in the back of her mind, Jack pushed forwards, being careful when he pressed his hand on top of hers, gripping it lightly.

 **"** Ally, it's gonna be alright, **"** he told her, his voice slow and steady like he recalled doing when his daughter would have the occasional panic attack. Slow and steady, let her take in the words. **"** He's gonna be fine, **"** he added. **"** The police are comin- the docs too, **"** seeing her torn expression, he added. **"** Deep breaths. **"**

"Jack- I can-"

 **"** Deep. Breaths, **"** the hologram barely left any room for arguments with the short quite growl, a sudden rush of serotonin through her veins told her he was physically making her body relax, helping it fight against her rising anxiety. It made her wonder how he did that. Be it serotonin or dopamine; the man could make it flow easily throughout her. When the noticeable stiffness in her shoulders started to drop, he repeated. **"** It's gonna be alright. **"**

With a small nod and the sound of sirens in the distance, the programmer stilled, hand still gripping Rhys' in an attempt to keep him with her. She didn't actually notice till now that his hands were rather large with small callouses on his palms and fingers- it made her wonder just how long he'd have them. Clearly, Hype was running his wild, the evidence being on his hands and the sprouting dark circled around his eyes. Alice had personally never had a great inspection of the man- but now she could see every scar he had. The one around his port and the tattoo he had on his neck were visible now. Although she was curious how far the ink went, she pushed it back at the sound of banging on her apartment door.

"Hello? Hello this is the paramedics," a shrill voice called from the other side of the door, Jack instantly moving to it to inspect the group. "Please unlock the door." Hesitantly, Alice drew closer to the door, watching Jack as his head phased out of the apartment then pulling himself back in after a moment.

 **"** We're good, **"** he reassured her, pulling himself away to let the woman open it up. When the door was unlocked and swung open, the woman wasn't shocked to see three Hype paramedics walk in dressed in white, yellow and navy. **"** Yeesh! If colour schemes could kill! **"**

"What's the situation?" Was the first question she was hit with, one of the men headed over to Rhys to check his pulse before assessing his form. With a single look around the room and towards the soaked to the bone woman, the team nodded to one another. "Go get the stretcher and check in with HQ to see when the police will get here," was the leader's final order before he turned to Alice, moving his hand to her shoulder. "Don't touch anything till they take photos. Now, are you a relative or..." The question hung for a minute, but she got what he was pinning at.

"I'm not either. I'm just his roommate- but he doesn't have any relatives in the country or a girlfriend," she quickly added, glancing between the man and the door for the stretcher to magically appear; which it didn't. "Can I go with him?" The brunette could see the hesitation in his face, looking back down to her friend before back to him. "Please?"

"Alright- you'll have to sign some forms when we get there," with a small nod and mention to the now arriving stretcher, the three got to their knees, helped transport the programmer down the stairs and to the awaiting ambulance down in front of the apartment building. The small crowd on the opposite side of the street made her nervous, half of them being on their phones now. "Okay. Adam let's get him in."

 **"** Whatta bunch of nosy assholes, **"** came the hologram's snarky growl at the response to people actually taking photos of them as well as the apartment where the large window was smashed in, the evidence being that the glass had fallen into the apartment and not onto the streets. **"** Piss off! It's just a nerd! Nothing you haven't seen before! **"**

Hearing the man trying to divert their attention didn't help much, seeing as no one but Alice could see him. _'Jack you're not helping.'_

 **"** They're pissing me off! **"** Came his next growl, slicing the air with his hand as Alice sat beside the smaller paramedic just mindlessly watching the hologram as he trudged himself into the ambulance too. **"** This stupid world pisses me off! Everything is a show to everyone- everyone's suffering, shitty agonizing pain is just- some show to them! **"** He rambled, trying to assault the wall of the moving vehicle. **"** I mean- yeah! It's freakin' hilarious when it's someone pissing me off or has that crap coming but everyone here, **"** he stopped, his fists tightening as he turned to the girl currently curled in her hair, watching the man near the door. **"** They do it to everyone. Everyone they freakin' see is their entertain to watch and laugh at. They're as bad as freakin' bandits! I hate it! **"**

The woman could see where he was coming from. Everything was published for everyone to see. The good. The bad. And the inhumane to watch. She was sure the near miss train bomb was on the news right now and others were badmouthing everyone involved for stupid reasons. The conductors for not finding it sooner, the passengers for not saying anything about the unmanned bag. And, of course, the people who placed the bomb on the train in the first place. Everyone was against each other and very rarely did anything for nothing unless it gave them a taste of self-satisfaction.

 _'Welcome to Earth,'_ she sighed, leaning her head back against the metal behind her, making her jolt when the ambulance came to a stop, the neon light out the window warning the people inside that they had arrived. The programmer offered what help she could give to the professionals, walking beside the man on the gurney as they started heading down the hallway of the hospital. "Hang in there buddy," it was a small comforting mutter to herself, nipping at the corner of her lip as they were lead into a room for an examination

* * *

 _August 1st, 2023._

 _Tuesday. 01:06._

The event seemed to lag on into the night, the dimmed lights of the hospital above the young woman which only seemed to flicker every second or so. It was one of the few things keeping her awake, along with her insomnia. The only company she had was Jack who sat opposite her in the hall, studying her body language and expression. The tension in the hall, to put it bluntly, was thick enough to cut with a metaphorical knife.

Then, the hologram snapped, shaking his head and flickering over into the seat beside her.

 **"** You know the dork's okay, right? **"** His tone was light yet caring, taking note of the small indents she had left on her bottom lip, both looking red and irritated now. Pushing the angst to the side, he leaned back till his back was against the wall, stretching his arms into the air. **"** He'll be up any second now and yapping his little head about how he fought those guys like- _'AH! I was soo cool you shoulda seen it!'_ , ya know. **"**

 _'There is no promise of that,'_ she thought back to him, moving her hands up to rub her eyes tiredly for a moment, moving back to grip the towel around her shoulder once she was done. _'This is all my fault-'_

 **"** No, it ain't- **"**

 _'YES. It is. They went after him because of this stupid program- they probably thought I was at home- not delayed- and- and-'_

When her thoughts started to spiral, the man flickered in front of her keeping the annoyance out of his voice as he snapped back. **"** He knew what he was getting into the moment he signed that contract- **"**

"And I didn't..." Her voice was soft now, bringing her legs up onto her chair, eyes hidden in her knees now. "And all of this happened. I got Rhys hurt and I- I could-"

"Alice Jones?" The new thought was enough to snap the girl out of it. Looking up at the new voice, she recognized him as the doctor that had past her nearly an hour ago. Quickly, she rose to her feet and hurrying over to the man a few feet away. "Friend of Rhys Baker, right?"

"Right," she answered, slowly moving to walk with the doctor who started leading the way in the direction of her roommate's room. She wasn't totally sure of his last name, having only seen glances of it on paper but it wasn't like that made much of a difference now. Baker. Huh, she totally wasn't expecting that. Then again, with a first name like Rhys, what was she expecting it to be? "How is he doing?"

"He's still unconscious. But, we've stopped the bleeding and stabilized him," that calmed her just a little bit, but didn't remove the initial worry of him being attacked. "He lost a fair amount of blood so we're keeping him overnight. Maybe till tomorrow depending on his test results."

"Test results?" She repeated in confusion, frowning at the sound of the doctor's voice as he continued to clear up any confusion for the girl.

"We've conducted a CT scan on his head," instantly, she got the reason why, glancing to the doctor's port that was just beside his right eye while her own hand scratched her own. "There was a little damage to his inner port so we're just making sure he hasn't sustained any permanent damage."

"Right. Okay. I- I um... can I go see him?" She murmured, jolting slightly when the man placed a hand on her shoulder, giving her a calming smile and nod. "Thank you."

"I know it's past visiting hours- but your name popped up on the system- so I'm sure they wouldn't mind."

 _'He knows. Then again, the robotics aren't hard to spot.'_

Hesitantly, Alice nodded and followed the man down the hallway, her heart pounding nervously against her ribs as they got to the door. Door number ninety-four. After a moment, she knocked her knuckles against the metal softly. When she didn't get a response, she turned the handle and pushed, stepping into the quiet room. The sight of her friend lying in bed, an IV line attached to his wrist and a heart monitor by his side, beeping softly to the slow steady beat of his pulse.

"He's not out of the woods just yet. So, if he wakes up, please call a member of staff to your room," with a small parting nod, the doctor left the room quickly closing the door behind him. This left the programmer in the room along with her friend, watching him breathe peacefully in slumber. It left her a little unnerved, slowly walking over to the man with Jack just a step behind her. He could feel her guilt as plain as day, frowning as she took the seat by his side.

The moment was filled with silence, gentle beeping filling the room as she couldn't bring her gaze away from the man. Despite all the crap that has been going on, this was a reminder of the shit she was going through. How easily a loved one could be dragged into the line of fire without her even knowing. Realizing this, she checked her phone for the time before stepping out and leaning her body against the wall, calling up a number and listening to the numbing tones. It was nearly twenty past one in the morning, she didn't expect either of the twins to answer her.

Of course, Margret didn't answer her. After the fifth ring, Judith did.

"… Hello?" It was a sleepy grumble but a noticeable one. "Alice? It's nearly half one... what's going on?"

"Huh- oh. Nothing. Just making sure you're okay," her own words came out in a nervous scramble, taking a deep breath as she moved her hand to her mouth to calm herself. "How's Margret?"

"… she's fine. Last time I saw her she was dropping me home from work," Alice responded with a small hum, nodding her head as she steadied her breathing. "Are you okay? Has something happened?" The concern was noticeable in the softer twin's voice, "Alice, talk to me."

"N-Nothing," when she noticed her voice shook, she also shook her head, sighing lightly. "Nothing to me."

"… Who is hurt?" Judith asked hesitantly, listening to the programmer as her eyes darted to Jack who was watching her. When he gave her a slow nod of reassurance, she released a breath she didn't realize she was holding.

"My a-apartment got broken into a few hours ago. My roommate, Rhys, got attacked and we're at the hospital right now," it was a quick, simple summary with little information revealed. Hearing this, the pastry chef needed a moment to calm herself.

"How is he?"

"He's... hurt. But he's stable. Unconscious but- stable," she gave Jack a small smile when he glitched into the space beside her, giving her a little comfort as she spoke. "He just had a CT scan so we won't know much more after that. Jesus- I'm sorry," the voice dropped into concern, glancing at her phone. "Did I wake you?"

"No. No, you didn't. I was watching a movie with Daryl when you called," at this, a pressure lifted from her chest. Knowing her brother was okay too. "He's okay too before you ask."

"That's good. Thanks," she always forgot one of her best friends was dating her brother. Mainly because it always made her feel awkward. "I'm gonna- check on Rhys again," she didn't want to keep her from going to bed and... other stuff, feeling sudden weird and unsure now. "I'll talk to you later."

"Alright. Text me if there's an update, alright?"

"Alright."

"Okay. Good night," with that, her friend hung up while the gamer released a breath of relief, glancing at the man by her side who simply gave her a comforting smirk. It was a simple gesture but it calmed her nerves. With this new reassurance in her mind, she stepped back into Rhys' room and took her seat by his side again.

"You're gonna be okay, Rhys," now, she spoke confidently, giving his bruised hand a small squeeze. Defensive wounds, she could tell. Whoever they were weren't sneaky with their approach. Or merely caught him off guard and he retaliated. "You're gonna be okay."

 **"** I don't think you're gonna be allowed back at the apartment after all this crap, **"** the hologram reminded her, her mind knowing it was true but it still... sucked. Hype wasn't going to let her within a mile radius of the place now after the bombing before. And now this...

"They'll probably lock me up in some Hype apartment for the rest of the experiment," she dry laugh left her lips at this, looking down to her hands in her lap. "Then probably kicked me out afterwards. God, that really sucks," Jack couldn't say she was wrong- since she was most likely right. They were dicks and most of the people knew she was right. There was blood in the water and everyone knew it. And he helped make it into what it was.

Then the idea hit Jack.

With a small growing grin, he moved to Rhys' other side, placing his hands near hers as he leaned his holographic body over him. **"** Hey. How'd you like to learn to code from your favourite handsome man? **"** It was a cheeky question, but it made more than a little confused.

"Johnny Depp?"

 **"** What- no! I mean- who the hell is that? **"** Clearly, the name confused the man, seeing as he didn't recall any of the actors or people he watched movies from or their names. **"** Never mind him. How'd you like to learn my code **?"**

That made her pause, narrowing her eyes at the man before back down to the small bruise around Rhys' wrist; she wanted to learn and get stronger. Physically, that was going to be taken care off with the military training. But intelligence wise, she was sure she was fine. "I already know most of the code used in today-"

 **"** No no no, **"** he frowned, the hologram waving his hand for a moment before looking back to her. **"** My code. That all of this was salvaged by. My code, is the God to all of this, **"** he said with a mention to the air, technically talking about what surrounded them. **"** Learn that, and you can hack anything, do anything, make anything- and that will make you invaluable to those morons, **"** the shit eating smile covered his face as ideas were starting to spiral in his coded mind.

"Isn't that sort of complicated?" She could recall university, with having to stay up some nights just to study enough for a test weeks away. The coding was crazy compared to what was high quality a few years ago. "It could take months, probably a year- a couple even more..."

 **"** Well, we're stuck like this for another year, ya know, **"** the man's smile didn't fade as he glitched in front of her, holding his arms to his sides. **"** We could have this entire world in our hands, baby! **"** He hummed, laughing to himself as the idea was a goldmine in his mind. Until he got his own body, this could work. He could find a way to control his company by giving her his power- his control. What Hyperion loved was smart people. And he could make her one.

With a smile, he presented her with his hand, smiling still.

 **"** What do you say, baby? Wanna become a badass like yours truly? **"**

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter fifteen of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 ** _The last couple of weeks have been pretty hard guys, but this weekend has completely given me the break I needed. I went to the local digicon and met a bunch of amazing people. Including our very own Dameon Clarke and Chris Rager. Two of the most amazing men might I add. Sweet as a button and both the nicest people I have met. Loved every second of it. Even when Dameon attempted to smother me in his jacket XD it was a hug but I'm a shortass so two hugs because me nearly dying in his jacket. Was it worth it? Yes, it certainly made us both laugh and smile._**

 _ **Also, thank you for your reviews:  
HeavenlyCondemned! It really brought a smile to my face AGAIN.**_

 _ **This chapter's question is: So, tell me guys (I'm gonna quote a question I asked at their panel.) What powerful line in the game hit you on an emotional level?**_

 _ **Answer: Mine would be during the Angel death scene. Jack losing his baby girl. "** **Please. Okay. Are you hearing me? Please don't kill my little girl." Since I believe that despite what Jack did, has done, he truly loved his daughter like any other parent. And the thought of losing her was probably scarier than dying himself. And the amount of emotion Dameon put into his line, it made my heart break a little. Like- damn. Damn almighty.**_


	17. Bowlarama

**Chapter 16**

* * *

 _August 5_ _th_ _, 2023._

 _Saturday. 10:10._

* * *

When someone you care about health starts to deteriorate, it becomes a concern. It shoves its way into your life without your say. Your mind is instantly drawn towards their own life. Comfort. Happiness. Pain. You're suddenly overly aware of how much they affect your life, only praying you have the same impact in theirs.

For Alice, it made her pause at how much Rhys caused her being to panic by watching his battered form twitch. Sudden relief flushing her being when learning there was no permanent damage to his mind, the angst when learning she'd be moved into a single apartment under Hyperion's order. She was allowed a few reasonable requests; her first one being no cameras, listening device or heat sensors in her room. Another being that no one was allowed to enter her room without her permission unless it was a life-or-death situation, lastly that she was allowed to bring all sentimental items from her old apartment. She didn't see the need to demand a larger room, with fancier items and such. She just wanted her privacy and her things. That was all.

Most of her requests were... reasonable for someone of her age, status and mind, all accepted with hesitance but it lead the brunette to voicing no complaints when the men started collecting her things from her old apartment. It made her a little sad when Rhys informed her that he would be moving his own apartment but brought her joy that he would be right next door if she needed anything. Not an offer as a co-worker, but a friend.

Which brings us to the present day, the weekend after the ancient where investigations were underway at the programmer's old apartment. Of course, it made her wary of what they would find. But anything useful would put a spring in her step when it came to stopping the group of thugs trying to take Jack away- something Walker had announced to the group in the urgency meeting they had the day before. Killing the users would be... useless to put it bluntly. Seeing as Hyperion could always make another one. So, to capturing them, removing the AI, and use it for their own selfish means was his thoughts. It made the users slightly calmer knowing there was a chance their lives would be spared, but it didn't lighten the weight on their shoulders.

"Welcome to the neighbourhood- neighbour!"

"You're so cringy, Rhys."

"I try, okay," his comment was enough to bring a chuckle past her lips, moving to the side to let the lanky nerd inside. He walked at a leisured pace, looking around and taking in what little things she had done to make the apartment more 'hers' than the company's. "Looking very..."

"Yellow."

"Oh! That's the word I was looking for," he faked amazement at her words, giving her the small potted pale purple succulent from his hand. "Also, a cactus for the young lady."

"Jeez, when did you start reading Jack's autobiography."

"I-I didn't r-read it- I mean- I- I- I don't have it like- with me I just-"

"You actually own it?" she only rose a brow at the lanky nerd in front of her before her eyes were drawn to the spread-out hologram currently lying across her settee. "You wrote an autobiography," it was then that the man decided to finally acknowledge the pair in the room, glimpsing to them from his horror movie 'The Exorcist'.

"What? I didn't write it myself- my time's _waaaaaay_ too valuable to spend writing a thick ass book about my greatest accomplishments, **"** the former CEO merely waved a hand at the pair, making the woman roll her eyes while her friend glanced between the settee and her. He knew who she was talking to but it never failed to faze him in the midst of their conversation.

"Men are so weird," the girl murmured under her breath, sighing as she went to find a spot for the plant to rest in- probably the window where it was sunny.

"I'm not weird, cupcake. He is, not me. I'm _amazing_. **"**

His words only made her chuckle as she placed the small pot down on the window in the kitchen, glancing back to Rhys who was standing awkwardly in the middle of the living room. Once the kettle was filled and heating up, she headed back into the room with chocolate digestives.

"So. How's the _no roommate_ status treating you," she questioned him, watching him shift on the balls of his feet before accepting a biscuit from his friend. It took the man a moment to reply, slowly sitting down on the comfortable settee unknowingly on top of Jack's feet. To which the hologram responded with a growl while pulling himself away from the lanky nerd.

"Truthfully, it's a little boring," he then mentioned to his real arm which was in a fabric sling. "No one to make me dinner half the nights. No one to borrow their DVDs. No one to crack jokes that I'm a double cripple now-"

"I would never poke jokes at your broken arm," was her quick response, frowning at the snickering hologram in the corner of her eye. "The voice in my head might but I wouldn't."

With that, Rhys barked a chuckle, shaking his head as she hurried back to the now whistling pot in the kitchen. "I guessed that. Handsome Jack doesn't seem very..."

"Trust me Rhys, he's not very keen on anybody, not even me," unknown to the brunette, the mentioned AI simply swapped a glare between the two. Seeing the unsure expression pass across her friend's face, she quickly added. "I mean- yeah. We get along sometimes but it's not all sunshine and rainbows."

"I wouldn't expect it to be," he chose his words cautiously, nodding his head in thanks at the coffee he was given. "Sharing your mind and subconscious sounds... scary," this was enough to make his friend glance down at her own drink, frowning softly as it was a fact. All of that. It was scary, sharing her own mind with someone. Her own thoughts being shared when they were both conscious.

"Yes. It can be," she could recall the many times she had woken up half asleep and freaked out when Jack greeted her. Hell, that still happened sometimes. "It has been near enough eight months since I took Jack into my mind and yet... it scares me- but at the same time, doesn't. Maybe I'm just getting used to him or something."

This was enough to draw the attention of said man being talked about, drowning the TV out in front of him as his sharp eyes darted to the girl. She placed down her mug to tug down the sleeves of her jumper. Simple habits he had picked up on shot through his coded brains like alarm bells, a couple more obvious ones becoming known to the man.

"Alice," Rhys started hesitantly, seeing the way her fingers were. "Are you... scared of Jack?" she didn't answer straight away, her eyes drifting to the rough cream carpet beneath her feet but for the AI, it was enough to confirm his initial fear. For Rhys, he needed a verbal response. "Alice?"

"At times, yes," yes, it was a feeling the man could feel sometimes surface in the back of his mind, but it only seemed to happen when he got angry and directed it towards her. "Mainly when he loses his temper," the woman glanced back over to her friend who seemed almost a shade paler now, looking down to his drink before back at her, chuckling to himself. "What is it?"

"Well, you're not the first to think that," The female only gave him a look to explain himself, Jack instantly moving closer to the man on the settee, trying to size him up and failing. "Jack was known for his rather... explosive temper."

"Oh, I'll show ya _explosive_ you little shit! **"** of course, the CEO was only proving the slightly taller man right with how he rose to his feet and proceeded to verbally attack the man. Having seen this enough times, the woman blocked out his ranting, her eyes turning back to Rhys.

"You don't say," the tease slipped the girl's lips without her realizing, grinning lightly at the blue man across from her. At this, his eyes turned to her with a small glare. To which she replied with a simple chuckle and childish response of sticking her tongue out for a split second. At first, the playful action fazed the man but pushed it to the side and responded in the same manner, sitting back down in his proclaimed spot on the settee. "You're a child."

"And you're a shortie, kid, **"** he was right to think that phrase would annoy her, watching her roll her eyes and throw him the middle finger before heading back to the kitchen.

"Err- what just happened?" came the lanky nerd's question, looking between the empty seat and his friend who grabs a few chocolate biscuits from the unicorn shaped cookie tin; thanks to Jacks begging to take it home when she was given a certain amount of money to use to decorate the apartment in whatever way she wanted. Apparent perks of being in her program.

"Jack doesn't agree with you. And says I'm short which I already know."

"Oh. Okaaaaay... wait. When does Jack ever agree with me? Has he ever agreed with me before?"

"Ha! No. _"_

"... No."

"Ah. Yaaaaaay..."

* * *

 _August 13_ _th_ _, 2023._

 _Sunday. 13:02._

"Why can't we just go home and watch shitty movies like that Jurassic park thing you love so much? **"** It was an abnormally hot sunny day for England. The temperature hitting above twenty-six was enough to bring some people to their knees while more indoors people were forced to dress for the weather. **"** Hell, we could rewatch that fish film again! What's it name? Mameo? Filipo? Fabio? **"**

' _He's called Nemo and he's the best fish in the sea,'_ came her counter as she continued to walk the streets of Croydon, neatly dodging out of the way of others walking towards her as she knew they had no intention of moving out of the way of her, seeing as she was a small woman who barely made it up to the eye level of others. It wasn't like she minded. She was forced into a pair of white jeans and a yellow (forced by Jack) tee shirt littered with white crosses across it; she didn't mind the fact people dodged around her tiny form. _'Please remember the name.'_

"Sure- whatever- why do we gotta socialise anyway? **"** the man merely walked step by step beside her simply ignoring the people walking through him as it had gotten used to the occurrence after so many months of walking the streets of London. **"** Can't we just stay at the apartment? You, me, bowl of popcorn, a shitty movie. Hell, we could even- **"**

' _If you suggest making out again, I'm going to have to remind you that it isn't physically possible nor would I agree to it.'_

"Jeez. Way to burst a man's boner," his words were enough to bring a smile to the girl's lips, facing forwards again feeling his stare at her features. It was becoming a habit of his, studying her expressions to better read her mind when she was keeping quiet in public. But all she was thinking was repeating the directions to the alley her friends had told her about. **"** Do you ever know where we're going? **"** when they got to a small roundabout, the large DIY store came into view. Alice simply nodded and continued walking through its large carpark.

"Now I do. Why are you being so weird lately?" she merely mumbled her reply under her breath while glancing down to her phone in her hands, seeing the small digital map where her little beeper was moving. They were close. At least, according to her maps. She could feel a small rush of excitement circle through her system, unsure if it was her own or Jack's. Given that the man was displeased with the idea of her talking to people her own age, the programmer assumed her own.

The hologram took note of the new skip in her step as she sped past the filled McDonalds and through the carpark. Finding the place was relatively easy now, spotting the dark windows with the white sign above the doors, blue writing with a red underline, the name 'ten pin' with a bowling pin as the 'i' made it pretty obvious.

"See. I'm not lost," seeing as there was no one around, she spoke cockily to the man beside her seeing the frown across his lips and annoyed pull of his eyebrows. Plus the pissed stare and hand on one hip. Yeah, he wasn't pleased. "If you don't wanna be here, catch a nap or something."

"Easier said than done baby, **"** with that, Alice stepped inside, being instantly greeted with a small arcade of around twenty machines. What interested her most was probably the zombie shooter games, herself chuckling at the sight of some eleven-year-olds throwing a fit about dying in less than a few minutes. Jack on the other hand, was distracting himself by looking around at the new toys. **"** Man, these kids suck. So badly. Just- aim for the head- AIM FOR THE HEAD! **"**

While he was doing that, his partner set herself the task of finding her friends and soon-to-be acquaintance. Truthfully, the twins weren't hard to find with Margret playing on the second-best game, Mario kart with her twin who was winning with first place while she supported fifth.

Alice couldn't help but watch the first couple of minutes of them playing, before finally speaking up.

"Whoa. You really suck, Maggy."

"Holy mother fucking balls-!"

"Language," the programmer was surprised her friend didn't snap her neck with how she turned to her, eyes wide and glaring. Seeing a familiar face, she calmed, bringing her hand to her chest before back to the game. Instead, the other twin greeted her first. "Hello Alice."

"Hey Judy," moving behind the large chair, the woman adjusted herself against it to watch the bustier twin from behind, seeing her smack straight through a rainbow box and seconds later- zoom into the last lap. "How're you two doing?"

"Fine," with a simple glance and reply, the artist was pulled back into the last round of their game, skidding to the left and straight down the road. "We've been here for an hour now."

"Just... gaming?"

"Yep!" nervously chuckles left the head chef, not even bothering to glance back at her friend. It was only a couple minutes later till Margret finally passed the finish line, her sister already holding a glass of gin and coke in one hand. Alice has already received a text from her friend, saying they would be arriving shortly anyway, so she had already ordered their drinks as well. Her dark blue eyes darted between the pair, raising a brow at their drinks before darting to the extra one in her twin's hand. "Is that vodka and coke?"

"Yes," carefully, she handed her already overactive sister her drink to which she simply downed half of it in one go. "You're paying for the next round."

"Of course!" the girls shared a small laugh between them while taking small sips of their meek alcohol, the twins' eyes traveling to their friends who was casually checking her phone for any messages. Margret picked up on this instantly, grinning now. "So, your boyfriend and his friend coming soon?"

"He's not my boyfriend," the programmer quickly protested, glaring at her friends who merely rolled their eyes to the sky while Jack phased himself back into existence. Truthfully, he wasn't surprised the more outspoken of the twins was making jokes with her friend, his eyes dancing to the door silently waiting for the man he wasn't entirely keen on. Call it a gut feeling, but he just couldn't trust the guy, at all.

It was nearly half one when the soldier stepped through the doors, a short ginger in toll wearing a similar high school student. It took Alice a moment to recall the face, her eyes widening slightly while the others seemed to get it instantly.

"Hey look, it's the C.O and his hammer of discipline," the group was a little amazed Margret could recall what Axton has called his friend over three months ago. "Okay, so we got one guy but we're missing the other," at this, the programmer turned with a raised brow. The smaller twin merely smirked back at her. "What?"

"What _other_?"

"What up my peeps?" the new voice was enough to make the group turn back to the entrance, Margret and Judith greeting him with eager smiles while Alice merely raised a brow in confusion. The African American took note of this, a smile sneaking up on his features. "What?"

"I didn't expect our surprise member to be you, Marcus," at her words, the man merely nodded as his eyes were directed back to the group before him, half of them being familiar faces, the others being new. At this, he chuckled, removing his neon blue baseball cap.

"Hi y'all. I'm Marcus," as a friendly gesture he raised his hand to the man of the pair, the solider merely looking between the two for a moment before returning it.

"Axton. This is Gaige," with a simple head nod to the girl beside, the man shook the other's hand roughly, veins appearing on both of them before pulling apart slowly. "Nice to make your acquaintance, Marcus."

"Nice to meet you, Marc," the little punk beside him perks up, the man greeting her response with a smile, nod and short 'You too' before turning back to the rest of the group. It took the programmer a notice of the flickering glitch in the corner of her eye, pushing it to the side as everyone started walking over to where their lane was. Alice decided to pace herself at the back beside the taller web developers. He was the first to speak up once the others were a considerable distance away, distracted by the start of their competition.

"Didn't Maggie say that guy was your new ' _boyfriend'_?"

"He's _not_ my boyfriend," was her simple protest, a small growl escaping her lips along with a sharp glare towards the other programmer. "Why does she keep saying him that?" at that, the man shrugged, rolling his shoulders slightly as he removed his backpack.

"Dunno. Probably cause she wants you to be happy."

"And a _boyfriend_ will make _happy_?" at this, the man snickered, flickering her shoulder playfully while dumping his bag near their designated lane. Alice copying his actions with her own handbag. "I don't think she understands."

"Pfft- 'course she doesn't. She's never lost a lover," his unhappy tone gave her the subtle reminder she needed to recall a story from the past, something he told her not long after her and Daniel started dating. "Ignore it. You'll find someone when you're ready."

The unsettling feeling in her chest seemed to lift at his words, a small smile gracing her lips for the first proper time today. Either everyone refused to touch the subject of love around her or continuously tried to reassure her that her next love was around the corner. It was comforting to hear she was allowed to wait, especially from someone who had lost someone before.

"Thanks. That means a lot."

"No problem. You're young. You've got time," right. How could she forget?

"I'll be twenty-three next month."

"Oh right. Congrats!"

"Thanks," It was a real shame she wasn't going to be spending it in Europe.

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter sixteen of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 ** _I just got back from Florida literally this week and whoa- I am ready to write the chapters set in Florida! Is it hot as hell? Yes. I almost died like four times from heatstroke. Humidity sucks balls. This is just a short chapter as I'll be uploading a .5 of the night before the trip with Alice on the weekend. Yay!_**

 _ **Also, thank you for your reviews:**_

 _ **Jillygon Bails! I absolutely adore your name! Makes me think of Billybongs for some reason lol Thank you so damn much for your two reviews, made me smile. :)**_

 _ **VixD! You sir, made me smile so damn hard over and laugh like an idiot. Truly, one of the sweetest compliments for this story since I do worship a few stories of Borderlands on this site. Again, thank you so much and I hope you continue to think this by the end of this book!**_

 _ **This chapter's question is: If you could introduce your favourite character to your favourite meal, who would it be and what would you feed them?**_

 _ **Answer: Handsome Jack to my favourite feast of Deep Dish spicy meat feast pizza with mac &cheese and garlic bread as a side, to drink would be either mountain dew or Dr Pepper, depending on how I feel and for dessert- Battenberg. My favourite cake :)**_


	18. REM

Chapter 16.5

* * *

August 14th, 2023.

Sunday. 22:29.

And here it was, the night before the grand adventure to America. What the programmer was feeling was certainly a mixture of fear and a few other emotions. Admittedly, she'd never left Europe before. Yes, she wanted to visit other countries like China, Japan and Jamaica and if Daniel was alive, she was almost sure they would have been able to scrap the money together at one point this year to visit at least one of the places. So, the idea of visiting a country so far away and riddled with war? The known fact she could get shot at any moment, it left her shaking.

When half ten rolled around, Jack forced himself awake at the feeling of consciousness on her end. It only took him a moment to digitize himself beside her, yawning and stretching himself out on the side of the bed she normally left empty.

His eyes shifted to her curled-up form beside him, her face shoved into that damn plush of hers and one arm wrapped around her body with the covers tangled between her legs. It was an odd sight, but he could recall the last time she was like this. Having seen it a few times before during her emotional breakdowns, the worst of her depression. But this wasn't that. This was something entirely different. She was fearful of the unknowing and knowing. Not knowing what it was like there and knowing the fact she could die the moment she stepped foot on its soil. The hologram could at least try to understand what she was going through, but he couldn't fully understand it.

He could tell she wasn't sleeping by her breathing alone, plus the subtle hints of where her arms were positioned and such. The man had lost count of how many times he had switched between eavesdropping on her dreams and watching her sleep.

Admittedly, yes. It was very creepy. But over the last couple of months, he felt curious about her- even protective of her being when she slept or when she was around crowds. The top of her head barely went past his shoulder and even though she wasn't weak, she was still his girl. Something he had to remind himself of sometimes when she wore overly baggy clothes or wrapped herself up in her 'protective blankets' as she put them; every last one of them having that stupid orange fish on it.

 **"** Can't sleep? **"** came his short question, watching the woman shift a little more under the duvetless covers. He watched her for a moment more, seeing bloodshot eyes past her lashes as she stared at the empty space in front of her. When she didn't reply, a bemused sigh left his lips. "Yeah. Me neither."

"You don't need to physically sleep though," she spoke, gaining his attention again, making him shift to his side to face her. When the woman closed her eyes, Jack used his memory to switch to a different outfit for the occasion, silky yellow pajama bottoms. Completely clashing with the red covers, her black tee shirt and matching shorts. "I can't stop thinking."

Hearing this, the man sat his head upon the palm of his hand, leaning his elbow against the mattress he couldn't touch. **"** Wanna hear a story? **"** at first, she seemed to think about it, before softly shaking her head into the pillow more.

"No thank you," hearing this was strange for Jack, knowing how she would normally agree to the story and happily fall asleep to it just before it got to the good part. "I don't think I'll be able to concentrate on your stories," instantly, the man sat up in mere shock at her words, watching her fingers dig into the plush, almost like she could feel his gaze upon herself. "I'm sorry."

 **"** Wha- look, pumpkin I didn't, **"** he started, rubbing his chin for a moment while staring at the cream coloured ceiling, before back down to her. **"** Don't apologize. Is there anything you wanna talk about? That stupid little fish maaaaybe? **"**

Of course, Alice was unsure if she should speak her mind. The man could read it anyway, so there much of a point saying it? But then again, he seemed to ignore most of her thoughts unless they revolved around him. So maybe he... wasn't listening to her thoughts right now. Maybe.

Slowly, she adjusted herself to sit up a little more, looking up in the direction of his voice. "I just wish I were anywhere but here," she started, looking down for a moment at the plush in her arms, before back up to where she assumed he was. "I didn't sign up for a war zone. People after my life. I just," Alice's grip loosened, biting down on her lip. "I just want a normal life again."

And that, he didn't have a response for. Yes, this wasn't what she asked for. She was offered a taster of a trial and was forced to take it once it had merged into her consciousness against her will. In the end, she didn't have a choice. In the end, the choice was non-existent. The proposal was nothing like the outcome she was given. He couldn't blame her for her wish. She wanted what was taken from her. He wanted the same. Everything that was taken from him. He wanted it all back.

Then it hit him, something he could try. Something he has been playing with for a few weeks now, unsure if it would even work or not. But hey, if it did. Whoo!

 **"** Hey, babe, **"** slowly, he planted himself down beside her, moving one arm under his head while his other hand moved to tuck a few locks of hair behind her ear. It didn't faze him as much when his hand fazed through the strands, simply pausing for the moment. **"** Lemme try something. I promise, it'll be fun, **"** the woman noticeably flinched when he ran a finger down from her neck, taking note of how her gaze darted from where his hand was before down to the mattress, before finally back to him.

"It won't hurt, right?"

 **"** Maaaaaaybe a little, **"** he spoke honestly, simply chuckling at her sour look while sitting up a little more, keeping his hand at the bottom of her chin. **"** I'm gonna need you to lie down now- good girl, **"** her frowny pouts were certainly entertaining, and seeing her actual listen to him gave him metaphorical goosebumps. She rarely listened to her boss, Hugo, Rhys, Axton, anyone. She was her own boss and having her listen made it so much worthwhile. **"** Now, I'm gonna control everything for a sec- relax, **"** slipping his hand down her neck to her collar, rubbing small circles near her shoulder. **"** Relax, baby. **"**

"Easier said than done," Jack felt a smirk growing at her grumble, his eyes drifting to her lips for a second before back to the port located above her right eye. Slowly, he lifted his free hand to it and probed it lightly with his finger. Alice gave a noticeable flinch at this, making his chuckles grow. His laughter made her eyes narrow, drifting to his direction. "Jack-"

 **"** Relax, babycakes. I know what I'm doing. **"**

"I hope so," she paused for a second, recalling what he just called her. "That's a new one."

 **"** Yeah- well. I like to try and experiment with crap and shnaps. **"**

"Noted," the next couple of seconds seemed to blur together for the girl, her form feeling close to shattering before a loud pop rung in her ears, her body feeling light and clear. Something she hadn't felt in months. Her hands instantly went to cover her ears, taking in the feeling of weightlessness surrounding her being. "What..." when the young programmer opened her eyes, the darkness covered her. Surrounded her. It was all she could see. "Jack?" it was a soft unsure call, fingers curled in her locks as panic raced through her. "Jack!" _'Where are you-?'_

"Jeez kiddo. No need to yell ya know," the voice was clear, no static or anything it usually had. She wasn't sure how she did it but she twisted herself around to face the voice, her voice becoming stuck in her throat at the sight in front of her. "I'm right here."

Jack. Jack in colour. Looking, human. Clothed in his regular attire. Looking... human.

The man took note of her look of shock across her face, chuckling as he took invisible steps forward to like her, placing a single hand on his hip while the other pointed to her. "Enjoying the view, sweetcheeks?"

Then she found it. Her voice resurfaced. "Y-You. You look rea-"

"Really hot? Supremely sexy? Like- super-duper handsome like a God? Yeah. I know," he grinned back at her shellshock expression, pushing a few of his bangs back before throwing his arms up into the air. "Welcome to your subconscious!" her expression dropped even more, her brows coming together in confusion.

"Excuse me," looking around, she didn't see anything at all apart from the man himself. "It's empty."

"Cause you're not thinking of anything but the emptiness, dum-dum," his comment was met with a glare to which he only smirked at, watching the woman survey the darkness with curiosity and disbelief. "Picture somethin', anything," Jack was only given a simple glance at his words before Alice turned back to the abyss that was her mind.

It took the programmer a moment to think of something, a room flickering around them almost instantly taking shape after a moment. A large fireplace, two brown tartan settees with a plush comforter on their backs, pictures hung upon the cream walls and a sound of soft laughter ringing in their ears.

The hologram openly stared at the room in confusion but after a hard look at the old photos, he could recognize the awkward eyes anywhere.

"Of course, the first thing that springs to mind is here," it was a soft mutter, but the volume of the room made it clear as day. This didn't faze the man as he walked further into the room she had created, picking up one of the photo frames from the top of the fireplace. A child, no older than five dressed in a lush red and white dress and cloak, a silly red hat on her head with long brown hair that reached the bottom of her back. Her eyes were the unmistakable shades of blue and gold, staring back at him with a mist of confusion in them.

"This where you grew up?" her answer was a simple nod as she took a seat on one of the battered settees, pulling her feet up under her legs as she watched the man place the photo down and move closer to the wall of photos to his right.

It was a foreign sight for him, pictures of childhood hung with pride as nearly every one of them was different in some sort of way. It was interesting to see a wide range of memories in one space, a lump momentarily growing in his throat before speaking through it.

"Hey look, it's the two retards," he spoke jokingly, pointing to the photo of two boys in reindeer costumes, their wide blue eyes directed to the camera with hands raised in a sort of 'rawr' form. "Jeez. They look so stupid."

"If you didn't know them as adults, you'd call them cute," the woman couldn't help but chuckle lightly at his words, looking over his shoulder for a moment before standing up and moving to his side. It took her a moment to gather the wits for her next line. "First time you've seen older pictures than the ones on my wall. It's a little... weird."

"Yeeeeee-eup," he hung on the vowel, his eyes stuck on the same photo of the three children and an elderly couple, both smiling in the moment. He could already guess who the pair were to them, having been in a similar situation himself. "Mom wasn't around, huh," he murmured, his voice low as he glanced down to the woman by his side, her hands gripped lightly at her side.

"No. She wasn't. Her career was more important than her children apparently," her words struck her in a way he didn't like, her tone furthering the sinking feeling in his stomach. After a moment Alice pulled herself away from the man and wall, "I spent most of my childhood and teen years with my grandparents."

Hearing this, Jack couldn't help but survey the photos quickly for his question. When he couldn't find the answer, he let his raised hand drop to his side, asking it aloud. "What about your father? Coulda sworn it took two to tango," the man couldn't recall a single time she had mentioned her father, so it made him wonder she hated him or something.

"He's dead," she answered, her eyes moving to the single photo above the only door in the room. A man dressed in standard army uniform, clean shaven with stunningly dark brown eyes; there was a light in them that seemed like it could not be extinguished. But for his daughter, it was never lit. "He died when my mother was two weeks pregnant with me. He didn't even know I existed... kinda shit, huh," a dry chuckle left her lips subconsciously, a small smile peaking at the corners of them.

"Well. Someone's a lil sad pumpkin, huh," a shiver involuntarily down her spine when his hand found its way onto her head, ruffling her already messy bedhead. "Well. Your mom ain't the only one that's screwed them over," Jack's words didn't faze her like normally, only making the growing curiosity rise inside her. "Did I ever tell ya 'bout the time my grandma drowned my cat?"

"Why do you always save the most interesting stories for when I'm toppling between the stages of depressed and normal?" hearing this stirred a chuckle from the man, harshly ruffling the locks between his fingers till she attempted to pry them out, to which he stiffened his grip and glanced down to meet her multicoloured gaze with his own. "You're an _ass_."

"Da _best_ ass. Like- have you seen this?" Jack merely glanced back at his own derriere with a sly smirk in her direction. Alice could feel her cheeks reddening at his words, knowing full well she had peeked a look at his rear end once or twice recently. "I mean- 'course you have you're with me all day everyday but haven't you felt it?"

"Your story? Drowning cat?" Alice was fully aware of her own state of wide eyes, blushed face and quick speaking but she was sure she could lead the conversation another way. Unaware of how much her partner was enjoying her reactions to his light flirting; it was certainly more humorous in person. Being able to touch her, feel her, whisper in her ear while- wait what?

The senior of the two has to pull away from her warmth to look at her properly, spotting the tell-tale signs of uncertainty and nervousness. He blinked twice, pulling his hand away from her to rub his chin then neck; where did those thoughts come from?

"Err- yeah. Y'know how my mom sucked?"

"... Yes."

"Well- ya see-"

The scene quickly changed into a more comfortable background of her own apartment bedroom, the two taking a seat in the beanbags she owned as Jack recalled the stories of his youth, both good and bad. When the stories started to get real serious, they moved to lie down on her bed, a familiar place for the two now. Some he lightly touched on while others he retold in detail. Like how shitty his grandma was, how school and university was his safe haven away from it all. It made Alice feel like she understood the man a little more, knowing about his past which he kept so hidden from the world and his peers. Knowing anything about the man made her happy, but anything he tried to hide from himself made it feel more real. Made him feel more real.

"What time is it?"

"Dunno. Your alarm ain't screaming."

His words made her pause, shifting to turn to the man in bed beside her. Neither of them under the covers, simply facing the ceiling while speaking to one another absentmindedly. It was the second time now she could study him close up in colour, feeling the not so subtle thumping in her chest as her eyes carefully ran over his features. It felt... different, now that there was a physical element to him now.

"This feels so surreal," her thought left her mouth without realizing it, only noticing when the man beside her glanced and met her gaze.

"Like. Ah. Dream," his wink was enough for her to tear herself away from him, looking back at the star-covered ceiling which seemed almost brighter than normal. "Get it? Cause this is where you dream shit-"

"Ha ha very funny," with an obvious roll of her eyes, Alice reached up for the low hanging enderman above her head, catching him up and pulling him to her chest. "You're sooo funny."

"I know right! **I'm** **hysterical** ~"

"Whatever you say."

* * *

 ** _Hope you guys enjoyed chapter sixteen of many more to come! Please review favourite and follow this story!_**

 ** _Here's hoping you lot enjoyed this little .5, inside the life of Alice where it's just- her. And Jack. Talking about bullshit and the past. Cause, let's face it. Jack has a pretty shitty past haha_**

 _ **Also, thank you for your reviews:**_

 _ **VixD! Sorry haha I didn't mean you were a guy since I always put 'sir' in 'you sir' cause it sounds so awkward saying 'you ma'am' lol and yeah, I rarely get replied too unless it's like a 'thanks blank blank and blank for reviewing last chapter'. Also, thanks for the praise btw hope you enjoyed this .5 chapter too!**_

 _ **This chapter's question is: What invention in our world do you think another character in the BL2 world would find 'interesting' or 'strange'. I personally want to show Roland a 'watch phone'. Like those watches you can phone people on? Imagine how useful those would be instead of those huge ass Echoes.**_


	19. America

Chapter 17

August 15th, 2023.

Tuesday. 6:00.

* * *

Aviophobia, the fear of flying vehicles. Looking at it from a scientific point of view, it's a pretty understandable phobia. Humans were not meant to fly. Ever. We do not process any wings or gliding body parts. Astraphobia and Thalassophobia both being similar anxieties in that sense then. A fear of outer space and the fear of the ocean.

Surprisingly, Alice had all three of these fears. And the fact she was currently flying over North Atlantic scared the absolute shit out of her. Even with her brother by her side, peacefully sleeping with most of his crewmates (and Vasquez) with minor turbulences; the young adult was left squeezing the red blanket she had been given tightly between her fingers. It was a six-hour jet ride and the team had been advised by the pilot to get as much sleep as they possibly could; the time being a little before six am American when they were due to land.

Everyone was eerily calm about the flight, even Vasquez. But then again, this was her first jet ride while the others had done this multiple time for work. Alice had only been on a plane once for a school trip to Micro land in Spain; a science related trip, of course. But this... this was different. Dangerous. Terrifying.

The youngest Jones sibling sat across from her brother and his teammates in the small cramped jet they had been given by the Hype cooperation. While her squad was more interested in the little buttons and features it had, Alice's mind strayed to America, wondering how much it had changed in the recent years. Literal hundreds of million people had been evacuated. Only the stupid and scared stayed in the war zone, some places being too contaminated with radiation that you couldn't even step a foot into the zone without becoming deadly ill.

 **"** Hey, kiddo, you awake? **"** the glitchy voice in her mind reminded her of where she stood, stranded in the air above in a small cramped space with five other people. That only made her feel claustrophobic. **"** Don't- Ally. Babe. Don't make me go in that little head of yours. **"**

 _'Jeez. I apologize for having a panic attack while we fly through war-stricken airspace,'_ thought the programmer as she gave the hologram beside her a subtle eyeroll. Something he decided to take with a flick of a birdie as he peered out one of the small circular windows beside him.; so much for his attempt at cheering her up _'Stupid jet.'_

 **"** Hah! This is actaully pretty cool babe! Ain't seen this much blue in a long time, **"** hearing this, Alice merely shook her head before scanning the faces of the people around her.

Her brother, Peter, who had recently now woken up seemed more absorbed with the tablet in his hand, swipping down whatever he was reading. He was the sniper of the group and everyone's commanding leader. Of course, he had something to occupy himself with.

There was Eliza Davis, from what Alice has gathered, she was in charge of keeping everyone's guns in top order as well as electronics. She was good with a pistol at close range, and that was about it. Well, from what the programmer knew about her, that was it.

Oliver Price was certainly a character in the programmers' eyes too, seeing as the man took whatever opportunity he could find to crack a joke in the most awkward of times. Still, she couldn't deny the man had some skills at staying sane in the tensest of situations. From the day Alice had met him over a month ago, the man had never lost his cool once around her. It was an admirable trait in the army.

Unsurprisingly, their group had a medic. Doctor Alex Burns, trained in the art of hand-to-hand combat and apparently, an assault rifle. It was certainly a way to introduce yourself, that was for sure. Leaving a rather large impression on the woman and her partner.

And there was Hugo Vasquez, a man who barely passed his requirements to actually join the group on their adventure to America. It wasn't a secret that Alice was hoping he wouldn't pass the exams by the end of the month. Alas, he had learned how to clean, use and reload his gun. Learned how to gather food, find fresh water and other basic survival skills.

It shocked the girl that she was going to be stuck with these five people for two weeks straight as they headed to their base camp in Ocala, FL before heading south in the direction of Miami, FL. On foot. That part scared her the most, seeing as they were taking the long route to avoid the most war-stricken parts of the state. Still, she was given a gas mask, just in case.

"This sinking feeling sets, it feels just like a hole inside your chest," instead of lingering on the thoughts in her head, the shortest programmer whispered the first song that came to mind to herself.  
"I know you're thinking, No, no, no, no, it is easier said than done," another song from her short playlist of old songs, some Jack knew better than others, but this one he knew to be an absentminded song. She hoped the sound of the plane could drown out her words for the rest of the crew. "But please let me attest. I know it's hard."

"What song is that?" She was wrong. The only other girl in the jet pipped up for the first time in hours, somehow hearing Alice over the roaring jet engine as her eyes set on the smaller figure opposite her. She stared back, eyes narrowing unsurely for a moment but relaxed at the warmth setting in on her shoulder. Glancing, she saw Jack leaning over her shoulder with a smirk, mentioning with his chin to the other woman.

It made her unwind, just a little. After a moment, she turned back to Eliza, forcing a light smile onto her face. "Why worry by the band 'Set it Off'. I don't think you'd know-"

"Oh! My dad used to listen to them all the time!" the gun fanatic chirped with a grin, leaning forward in her seat while Alice nonchalantly scooted back into hers. "I don't think I know that one but- I remember this one he likes goes like 'No, there's no denying chemistry this strong~ Yes, pretend it's right but we both know it's wrong~' like that!" the excited girl sung a little out of pitch compared to the other, but the programmer instantly knew it, feeling her cheeks burn. "Know it?"

"Ancient history. It's one of my favourites. 'Yes, pretend it's right but we both know it's wrong'," hearing the lyrics continue, Eliza's smile grew, following on with her new companion.

""Hah- 'Thinking about the storm advancing. Thinking about the lightning dancing in your eyes. But I, can't shake these memories I bring inside. Tension builds, I think we're under-thinking part time thrills."

"Glad to see you two are getting along," Peter spoke up as the girls finished their verse, both sets of blue eyes turning to the man sitting at the far end of the jet. "Was starting to think we'd be riding in silence the entire way there," her brother didn't bother to hide smirk he offered her, making her roll her eyes and glance back to the window behind her.

"Pfft- 'course not," hummed the ginger girl, kicking her feet in her seat seeming physically anxious to start moving again. "Just didn't know what to talk about," she paused, looking back to the brunette opposite her. "What other music do you like? Oh! I know, sing me something and I'll try to guess it!"

"Huh- oh- umm- I can't- I mean-"

 **"** Pfft- aww babe you blushing? That's precious! **"**

 _'Fuck off!'_

 **"** Ghahaha! Language cupcake! HAH! **"**

* * *

August 15th, 2023.

Tuesday. 18:00.

"Captains log. Eighteen hundred hours, we've arrived at basecamp in Ocala, S Pine Ave, stationed in what used to be the 'Evergreens Motel'."

It was a shitty little hideout in Alice's opinion, in a small cramped room with the other members of her team. Thankfully, she was given one of the beds in the room, the others having decided to play poker after they ate for the second one. It made her wonder why they even wanted it. It felt like the floor would be a more comfortable place to sleep than the ripped and obviously tainted bedsheets. She planned to remove them before sleeping.

"After a quick water resupply in the morning, we will be starting our journey to Miami, Morningside Park. Peter Jones, signing off," as her brother pulled his small black device away from his mouth- something the programmer assumed was a recorder or some sort- he stood up and walked over to the window, yanking the makeshift curtain Oliver had made with some of the dirt-covered pillowcases to the side and gazed out to the deserted carpark in front of them.  
After a moment, he turned back to the group scattered across the room. "Alright team. First things first, our arrival in America was a success. Everyone got off the jet safely," he glanced between the office man and computer nerd, moving his hand to his chin. "Now, we sort out dinner."

"I volunteer first hunting shift!" hummed the ever-excited Eliza, raising her hand to her superior officer with a smile. "There seemed to be some wild pigs roaming around about half a klick from here. Shouldn't take long to snip one of the smaller ones off for dinner."

"I don't mind joining her," called the doctor from his place beside the smashed TV, holding his helmet in his lap as he wiped a line of sweat from his brow. "I'm not a fan of sitting still."

Peter barely gave their suggestions a moment of thought before nodding his head, picking up a brown battered armchair from the bedside and over to the window, sniper in hand still. "Sure. Be back within the next two hours. If not, I will be sending Price after you two," at the mention of his name, Oliver smirked in their pair's direction, watching the two gather their stuff and head towards the door without missing a beat. "If he's not back within the hour, we'll leaving."

"Suuure."

 _*SLAM*_

 **"** Whoa. What a party, **"** Jack reappeared in front of his User, materializing in a fancy glitchy show of his own. When her gaze met his, he smiled, showing his teeth as he moved his hands to his knees and leaned his face closer to hers. **"** Whoa. You look like shit cupcake. Looks like the sun bitchslapped your nose, **"** for empathize, he reached up and flicked it gently. Alice twitched, shifting away from the man to sneeze. **"** Pfft- hahahaha! Gotta try that more often! **"**

"Gesundheit," Peter chimes from his place at the window, not even glancing back as he kept his eyes trained through the few holes of the cover. "Don't catch a cold."

"How can I catch a cold in this humid heat?" came the girl's snarky response, shaking her head for a moment before shifting to lie down on the uncomfortable bed. The room settled into an almost pleasant silence, the woman reopening her eyes to see her hologram lying beside her on the air beside her bed. Jack flashed her a grin as he shifted his chin onto his palm, smirking.

 **"** Sup babe, **"** he purred, enjoying the small flush that slowly spread across her normally pale cheeks. It was a challenge to keep her looking at him, tilting his head slightly when she didn't reply right away. **"** Hah- cat got your tongue? **"**

 _'No,'_ her blush said otherwise and they both knew it, another chuckle slipping the blue man as they ignored the conversations going on around the room; mainly between the office worker and soldiers. _'I'm just keeping my mind clear.'_

 **"** Pfft- sure cupcake. When do you ever stop thinkin'? **"** the man questioned, moving his other arm to rest across his hip purposely. He saw her eyes follow his sudden movement, the colour in her face deepening as she glanced back down to the bed. Her actions always interested him, especially the rarer, harder to nudge ones. **"** Ohhhh baby I didn't know you had it in ya~ **"** Jack instantly purred, enjoying the way his partner instantly turned to hide her reddening cheeks in the pillow she had made out of her jacket.

 _'I wasn't thinking anything!'_ she protested, moving her hand to cover the rest of her face from his gaze. He laughed harder. _'Stop laughing you prick!'_

 **"** Oh God- you're so easy to tease! Ah- never gonna get bored of this- dig this little thing we got going on babe, **"** he was grinning, Alice was sure of it, the ex-ceo was grinning and laughing like a goddamn hyena.

"Ughhh... please shut up shut up shut up shut uuuup."

"You alright there?" hearing her brother's voice, the programmer shifted to further hide her face in her makeshift pillow. "Got a... stomach-ache or something?"

"No... just a headache. I'll be fine," it was an innocent lie of course, the girl shifting onto her front now so no one could see her expression. It wasn't like the others were going to figure out what Jack was saying, thankfully, so it didn't really matter. "Just need a good night of sleep."

"You can head to bed after dinner. If you aren't feeling too great, take a nap and I'll wake you for it," his words were comforting to say the least, the girl shifting onto her other side away from Jack. But wasn't entirely shocked when he glitched himself onto the other side to grin at her. Alice glared, he winked. It made her wonder how it had gotten to this point, having been stuck with the man for over seven months now.

"Alright," unsure of what else to say and feeling totally exhausted from the day of getting up early, rushing around and traveling via jet for hours, an early night sounded great. "Goodnight," even if it was only one night. Who knew what the rest of the trip was going to be like?

* * *

August 19th, 2023.

Saturday. 13:00.

The next couple of days past rather smoothly, at least by her brother's standards it seemed. Most of the lands were desserts, apart from the small populated areas that were written on their map. Places the group avoided like the plague, in the case that they were hostile. The risk was far too great, at least by Hype's standards. What curiosity Alice had was quickly swept under the rug by her brother's words "Don't bother. They'll most likely kidnap, rape or kill you", something that was becoming a growing fear for the young adult. "Or all three."

Jack almost automatically dismissed the commander's words, referring to him as a 'fear-filling-prick' and that he would keep his User alive if she ever wanted to visit the tiny factions. It left her feeling safer, but rejected the idea of stepping foot on the banned ground. It annoyed the ex-CEO slightly but said nothing else about it.

It was only the fourth day in America for the squad and the heat was finally hitting the ones with a higher tolerance. Being, the men of the group. But once they had all set off, trying to walk under as many trees as possible, there was no room for complaining. Instead, they were all in charge of keeping a lookout in the surrounding area, as well as not gulping down their bottled water till they came to the next river with clean water.

Which left Alice and Hugo in the middle of the group, two ahead and two behind, kind of like a caravan in some creepy space or cowboy movie. It wasn't near as cool as it sounded though.

 **"** Ughhhh I'm sooo bored. There's nothing but dirt, dirt and more dirt here! **"** and Jack was certainly making his boredom known to his User, floating in a full circle around her, many, many times as he voiced his thoughts. **"** Even staying in your shitty apartment was better than this stupid place, **"** he continued, waving his arms into the air overdramatically now. **"** Gimme something to do! Anything! I'll even make small talk with that stiff, **"** when he pointed to her left, Alice followed his finger with her eyes till they landed on Hugo only steps to her side.

Hearing this, the woman raised her brow at the hologram, watching him further throw a hissy fit over pure boredom at nothing to do. "Really now?" Jack wasn't the only one that heard her question, Vasquez sneaking a glance in her direction as he forever kept his hand on the pistol in its holster, clearly as tense as ever. "You'd really talk to him, because you have nothing else to do?"

 **"** Aaah, yeah-huh. When have I ever lied to you, pumpkin? **"**

"Sometimes I question how many of your tall night-time tales are actually true," she challenged the man, a small smirk lacing her chapped lips knowing full well the man would rather attempt to eat nails than talk to someone whose voice he compared to being like nails on a chalkboard. Alice could physically feel the confused stare she was getting from the man beside her, pretending to shake her head for a moment as Jack merely huffed and continued. "Probably like two."

 **"** Errr- all my stories are true. If you had read my autobio like that nerd, you'd know even mooore about the handsome man, currently standing in front of you, **"** at this, she chuckled and raised a brow at the man watching her, glancing to where his feet were floating in mid-air, then back to him. Seeing this, Jack followed her glance, his frown pulling into a thin line now. **"** Floating, not standing. I can't be damned to stand right now. **"**

"Oh my God," hiding the snicker was a little harder now, shifting her lightweight scarf to at least hide the badly suppressed smile from showing. "You're soo weird," she whispered to the man, catching his eye for a moment before glancing behind her at her brother and Burns. After a moment, Alice turned her sights to David and Price in front of her, none of them taking notice of her barely stopped chuckles. He made her laugh, quite easily sometimes. That was something she couldn't deny.

But a new voice caught her attention, Jack's bored gaze narrowing as he glanced to his right- her left.

"Is umm... everything okay over there?" Hugo had clearly noticed her expression and had just caught her words, hand never shifting from his gun as he walked beside her; if it wasn't for the fact he knew about the man residing in her mind, she was sure this jumpy man would have shot her by now. It was almost like he had a snake in his boot.

Cautiously, the brunette glanced up to the man floating in front of her who gave her a mere shrug in response. "Don't look at me. Tell him if ya want but don't expect me to do the talkin'."

"You literally just said you wouldn't mind making small talk with him," she muttered loud enough for both men to hear, Jack pausing in his float to frown and wave his hand dismissively. "Oh, don't give me that- talk to him."

 **"** And how am I supposed to do that, babe? **"** it took her a moment to think of a response, feeling the eyes of the man beside her burrowing into the side of her head.

"I'll be the messenger. I'll repeat what you say," seeing the unamused expression he pulled, she forced a smile and turned to the man beside her while uncomfortably adjusting the rifle on her back. "Hey Hugo. Would you mind having... a chat with Jack at all?"

 **"** Of course, he wouldn't- **"**

"Not at all!"

 **"** Told ya, **"** the man floated leisurely beside the woman, circling her slowly as she closed the gap between her and her teammate a tad. **"** Everybody wants to talk to Handsome Jack. It's an honour, really! **"** Already Alice was holding back a cringe at his flamboyant nature.

"Do you mind if I ask you some questions first- like, how do you know Jack- apart from him being your previous employer?" even to herself the question felt odd, frowning lightly as she added. "Did you two have a relationship outside of work at all?"

 **"** _Obviously_ not. **"**

The question caught the businessman off-guard, blinking as he absentmindedly fiddled with his gun's grip. The action caused the uncomfortable hole in her stomach to dip even deeper now. "No no... Jack was always busy with his great work or socializing with the other higher-ups at their infamous gatherings. I could only imagine what happened behind those closed doors..." seeing the man's disappointed expression made the woman feel a little bad, forcing an awkward smile onto her lips as she continued.

"I'm sorry to hear that. He tells me tall tales of his life... alive... sometimes. How did his employees see him?" The question sparked a smile from the salaryman, Jack merely groaning at the question and how eager Hugo looked to answer it.

"There is no question about it- we all idolized the man! Not as much as myself- of course- but everyone thought of the man as a great leader," he started, listing reason after reason as to why everyone loved the man in question. From his good looks, to his leadership, harsh but profitable decisions which in-turned helped so many, how smart he was, how great he was at his job, and etc. "No one questioned his decisions! Everything he promised would happen, happened."

"I was told he has a terrifying temper though," and it was something Alice could vouch for herself, having the man explode at her more than a handful of times for both large and minor reasons. Recalling them still made her cringe.

Hearing this, Hugo tightened the grip on the handle of his pistol as his jaw clenched tighter with obvious annoyance. "And who said that? It was Rhys- wasn't it?" The programmer blinked at this. "That shit-stain doesn't know what the hell he is talking about- always talking shit about stupid things. Doesn't know when to stop talking," his tone alone said what he thought about her ex-roommate. Vasquez clearly didn't like him at all.

Alice felt her hand drift towards the pistol she had strapped to her thigh, resisting the urge to draw the gun as her heart started to pound in her chest. The programmer could feel the anger rising inside of her but expertly held a face of indifference as she coyly played with the weapon at her side. Jack merely watched with an amused smile on his face, silently, of course.

"I truthfully don't know why that idiot is still in this project. With you now moved into our exclusive apartments- your safety is secured. He should've been moved off base, whenever I don't have to see him-"

"Mister Vasquez, I kindly suggest you shut your stupid mouth before I do it for you- either physically with my own two hands, or by blowing your brains out with the pistol I'm currently holding. Alright? Thank you," the words left the Astraphobic's mouth without her realizing, only taking notice of how cruel her words were when the voice in her head burst out into immediate laughter at the man's reaction.

 **"** Oh my God he looks like you just slapped him! No- no! Kneed him in the jewels! Ohmygod, Cupcake do it again! **"** unsurely, Alice glanced over to Hugo to her right as guilt quickly started to settle itself in her stomach. Seeing the man's hunched posture made her bite her tongue, but she couldn't tell if the red in his face was from fear, or anger. Without a clear answer, she sighed.

"I'm... sorry. That was a bit much," threatening to attempt murder was always a little bit too much in her opinion, especially since he didn't threaten it in the first place. "I can get a little overprotective of my friends."

"You just threatened to blow my head off," I mean, the man had promised to do the same numerously to others in the past, but that was work. Well, technically this was as well. "Are you really friends with... Rhys."

"I'm just gonna ignore the way you said his name like some sort of vile parasite but- yes. I consider him one of my friends," the way she glared at the businessman made Jack unable to hold back his proud smirk, chuckling at the other man's expression of pure annoyance, fear, and exhaustion; things were currently getting interesting. "So please be sure to hold your tongue around me if it involves my friends," the innocent smile made both the men twitch; one with excitement, the other with irritation.

A small chuckle escaped her as she repeated her own words in her head, realizing how much she had changed over the last year. Till now, she rarely spoke to her friends because of her work. And now, her feelings for them had grown this much. It was... surprisingly. 'God I'm such a dork.'

Before Vasquez could utter another word, their leader called from behind. "Hey! We're making a detour to the East. Map's saying there is a clean water source five klicks from here," the group simultaneously released a breath of relief at this, a small cheer coming from the two at the front, both high-fiving one another.

The pleasant sight made the programmer smile, chuckling lightly at the exchange while the man beside her grumbled 'bout time we got some water' which she couldn't blame him for. They had been rationing it since yesterday and they were stuck in this insane heat. Freshwater sounded amazing. I think that was something they could all agree on.

By the time the group has gotten to the clean river, the front of the group had taken off in a small jog- truthfully, Alice could barely contain herself with the sight of the cold water, biting down on her inner cheek to follow the rest of the group's pace towards it.

"Thank God," hearing those words slip past her brother's lips was enough for the team to relax, chuckling among themselves as their first priority was filling up the canteens as much as they could. Then, they could wet themselves and play a bit. Pretty much everyone took advantage of the water apart from the two Jones siblings, watching from the bank under the shade of a nearby tree, using a log as a makeshift seat.

The silence was almost torture. Almost. It was peaceful, and that was more than what she could have asked for knowing she was traveling through a warzone. The quiet was comfortable compared to the tense silence they had been walking in the last couple of days.

"It's been awhile since we've spoken alone, huh," the words jolted Alice from her thoughts, her brother leaning closer to her with a small smile. He knew how jumpy she could be, so he tried to speak as quietly as possible by moving a little closer. "I mean, last time we were alone together was- like- Christmas. Three years ago."

"I'm surprised you remembered," a dry 'hah' left her lips as she recalled the day; Christmas at their grandparents', hot chocolate all day, shitty Christmas movies and a huuuge roast dinner at the end. God, her grandmother and Daryl made a tasty dinner. Although all Daryl did was buy store-bought chocolate cake and decorate it with colourful fondant shapes he made. "It was... a great day."

Peter smiled at the thought himself, chuckling dryly as he reached his arms up to stretch. "Oh yeah. Grandma cooks a mean turkey. God, I would kill for a plate of hers," his words were low and grumbling, making the girl smile fondly as she let herself lean against his side. He didn't comment, yawned and continued to watch his group and the surrounding area carefully. "How about... we make a pact."

"A pact?"

"Yeah. I'll send a message to Daryl as well. This year, we all spend it at Grandma and pa's house," the eldest of the siblings glanced down with a tired huff, moving to run a spare hand down to his pistol in thought. "Haven't seen them since then. Would be... a nice change of pace."

"Seriously?" the proposal was enough to make Alice lean away to stare at her brother, an iron stare on her face as she watched for any sort of insight into his thoughts. "You'll both come home for Christmas?"

"I don't see why not," her brother's mixed eyes scanned her for a moment more, dryly laughing as a thought passed his mind. "I mean, I get it. We haven't always been there for you," he couldn't stop his gaze from running over her left hand, shaking his head before turning back to her. "But we want to be. Promise."

"You promise," the programmer repeated his words slowly, letting them roll over her tongue as she stared almost blankly at her brother's face. It left a bitter taste in her mouth but it faded when his smile grew sincerely before nodding his head. She could feel the voice in her head mumbling incoherent words in the back of her mind but paid it no heed as she could feel herself breaking out into a smile herself. "Yeah. Let's do it."

"Great. It's agreed," it took Alice a moment to hold back the happy sigh building in her chest, simply nodding her head along with a small laugh. He copied, reaching up and ruffling her hair affectionately. "Also, ask the twins if they want to join. I know our little prick of a brother is dating one of them."

"Do you know which?"

"Nope," a laugh left her at this, knowing full well he was planning to find out, one way or another. Even though she was sure Daryl would just tell if he asked.

After a moment of silence, her brother's head turned towards her but glanced past her head. Unsure of what to think about this, following his gaze and seeing nothing but dirt, dust and the odd bird here and there. "What is it-"

"Get dow-!" the familiar sound of a silenced shot ran through the air. Blood hit the programmer in the cheek, dropping down off of the log they were using and onto the ground. Lungs tight as she yelled down to the rest of the group in the river.

"Get down! Shots fired!" the next thing she knew, felt was a burning pain in her thigh- both thighs. A strangled yelp leaving her lips as she struggled to shift around the log to find a safer position. Looking down, she could feel the entrance wounds, inches above her knees, perfectly, the distance. It was planned, a sniper. Pain blossomed up her legs as the brunette struggled to sit up a little, looking around but quickly ducked when a shot hit the wood a mere foot away from her head. Definitely a sniper. Two, maybe.

"What the hell is going on?!" the static of Jack's voice cut through the silence like a knife, her heart skipping a beat as she glanced up to his form standing over her. Panic, anger and concern were clear on his face as he quickly knelt down beside her, cursing to himself as he glanced between her paling face and the wound. "Pressure! More pressure! Now! For taint sake- I leave for five damn minutes-"

She applied more pressure on her wounds, biting down hard on her bottom lip to quieten the burning cries she so desperately wanted to make. Then, footsteps. Loud, slow, deliberate steps being taken towards her from the South. More bullets being sprayed towards the river but her main concern was whoever was walking nearly.

 **"** Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh SHIT! **"**

"God- damn it," with a small curse she reached for the pistol at her side, biting down harder now as she released her right leg to hold the weapon, aimed up as she laid down against the hot ground, squinting past the sunlight.

A figure appeared, sun behind her highlighting her red locks as golden amber eyes stared down at her. Alice shot, emptying her gun into the figure who merely raised a flaming hand to her. Once the shots stop, the woman above her smiled, dropping the bullets mere inches from her face.

 **"** Get away from her! **"** Jack flickered, rage clear in his voice.

The programmer could feel her stomach dropping at the sight, heart-stopping as she spoke.

"Nice try. Now," she knelt down herself her, one hand pressure down on her uncovered wound roughly. Rough enough to force a pained gasp from Alice, pushing the back of her head into the dirt to try and force herself not to scream out. When a glowing hand touched her face, she froze, glancing back to the woman who held a sinister smirk. "Let's take a nap, shall we?"

 **"** STO- **"**

The world went black. Sounds seemed so far away, she couldn't make out a single word buzzing past her. Alice felt like she was floating. In a familiar void. Dark, deep, endless. Every time she tried to struggle out of it, she could feel herself being tugged back down, deeper.

It was only when she stopped struggling, did she start to make out some of the words echoing in her consciousness.

 _"This isn't right, Lilith!"_

 _"My word is law. None of you could survive without me."_

 _"Alice!"_

 _"It's going to be okay..."_

 _"It's only going to get better from here."_

 _"Oh my God... Ally."_

 _"You're alive... you're really, really alive."_

 _"Hah, of course I am, babe. Who the hell could stop me? I'm-"_

 _ **"HaNdsOmE GoDdAmN JaCk!"**_


End file.
